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EXPOSITORY  LECTURES 


O N 

ST.  PAUL’S  EPISTLES  TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


SERMONS 


O N 


ST.  PAUL’S  EPISTLES 


TO  THE 


CORINTHIANS: 


DELIVERED  AT  TRINITY  CHAPEL,  BRIGHTON. 


B Y T H E LATE 

REV.  F.  W.  ROBERTSON,  M.A., 

THE  INCUMBENT. 


BOSTON: 

TICKNOR  AND  FIELDS. 


M DCCC  LX. 


STEREOTYPED  AND  PRINTED  BY 
THURSTON,  MILES,  AND  PRITCHETT, 
C A M B R I D 


G 


\ gj’Scc  \ *2)  U)  ^ 


i 


TO 

THE  CONGREGATION 

WORSHIPPING  IN 

TRINITY  CHAPEL,  BRIGHTON, 

From  August  15,  1847,  to  August  15,  1853, 

THESE 

expository  LECTURES, 

DELIVERED  BY  THEIR  LATE  PASTOR, 
0-p  ARE  DEDICATED. 

O 

. 

lU 


PREFACE. 


A FEW  months  after  Mr.  Robertson  had  entered  on 
his  ministry  at  Trinity  Chapel,  Brighton,  he  announced 
his  intention  of  taking  one  of  the  Books  of  Scripture 
as  the  subject  of  Expository  Lectures  for  the  Sunday 
afternoons.  This  form  of  address,  he  said,  gave  him 
greater  freedom,  both  in  subject  and  style,  than  that  of 
the  sermon,  with  its  critical  or  historical  division  of 
some  text  arbitrarily  taken  as  a prefix.  He  intended, 
therefore,  to  devote  each  Sunday  morning  to  the  ser- 
mon ; and  in  the  afternoon  to  go  regularly  through  each 
chapter  of  the  Book  selected,  including  in  his  exposition 
all  the  topics  contained  therein. 

On  this  plan  he  commenced  with  the  First  and  Second 
Books  of  Samuel.  In  the  exposition  of  these  Books 
many  subjects  came  under  review  which  would  not  have 
found  a place  in  an  ordinary  sermon.  He  was  ex- 
pounding Hebrew  national  life,  and,  incidentally,  the 
experiences  of  particular  individuals  of  that  nation,  — 
in  all  of  which  he  discerned  lessons  for  the  English 
people,  and  for  the  men  and  women  who  sat  before  him. 
Thus  it  occurred  that  topics  of  national  policy,  so  far 
as  bearing  on  individuals,  — questions  of  social  life  — 
of  morals,  as  they  are  connected  with  every-day  life, 
arose  naturally,  and  were  treated  with  unshrinking 
faithfulness.  The  period  (1848)  was  one  of  great  po- 
litical and  social  excitement,  and  these  Lectures  may 


Vlll 


PREFACE. 


emphatically  be  said  to  have  been  ‘‘  preaching  to  the 
times.” 

Some  people  were  startled  at  the  introduction  of 
what  they  called  secular  subjects  ” into  the  pulpit ; 
but  the  Lecturer,  in  all  his  ministrations,  refused  torec- 
oernize  the  distinction  so  drawn.  He  said  that  the  whole 
life  of  a Cdiristian  was  sacred,  — that  common  every- 
day duties,  whether  of  a trade  or  a profession,  or  the 
minuter  details  of  a woman’s  household  life,  were  the 
arenas  in  which  trial  and  temptation  arose  ; and  that, 
therefore,  it  became  the  Christian  minister’s  duty  to 
enter  into  this  familiar  working  life  with  his  people,  and 
help  them  to  understand  its  meaning,  its  trials,  and  its 
compensations. 

It  were,  perhaps,  out  of  place  here  to  say  how  greatly 
the  congregation  valued  this  mode  of  teaching,  although 
it  may  be  properly  observed  that  it  was  at  this  period 
that  his  marvellous  influence  with  the  working  classes 
commenced. 

Subsequently,  Mr.  Robertson  selected  the  Acts  of 
the  Apostles,  and  the  Book  of  Genesis,  for  his  after- 
noon expositions ; after  which  he  commenced  those 
Lectures  on  the  Epistles  to  the  Corinthians,  of  which 
this  volume  is  but  a very  imperfect  transcript.  The 
Epistles  to  the  Corinthians  were  selected  by  him, 
because  they  afforded  the  largest  scope  for  the  consid- 
eration of  a great  variety  of  questions  in  Christian 
casuistry,  which  he  thought  it  important  to  be  rightly 
understood.  It  will  be  seen  that  these  Lectures  were 
generally  expository  of  the  whole  range  of  Christian 
principles.  They  are  less  a scheme  of  doctrine  than 
Mr.  Robertson’s  view  of  St.  Paul’s  ideas  on  all  the 
subjects  included  in  his  Epistles  to  the  Church  at  Cor- 
inth. 


PREFACE. 


IX 


They  were  the  fruit  of  much  study  and  preparation, 
and,  from  examination  of  his  papers,  it  appears  that 
Mr.  Robertson  prepared  very  full  notes  of  all  the  lead- 
ing divisions  in  most  of  these  Lectures,  while  of  the 
minor  divisions,  a single  word  was  often  all  that  was 
written  down  to  guide  his  thought.  Occasionally,  at 
the  request  of  some  friends,  he  wrote  his  lecture  out 
after  its  delivery ; and  these,  with  short-hand  notes  of 
others,  taken  by  different  people,  and  which  have  been 
carefully  collated,  with  his  own  manuscript  notes,  have 
been  the  materials  from  which  this  volume  has  been 
arranged.  It  is,  therefore,  necessarily  somewhat  frag- 
mentary in  its  character.  Mr.  Robertson’s  custom  was 
to  preach  from  forty  to  fifty  minutes,  with  a clear,  un- 
broken delivery,  in  which  there  was  no  hesitation,  or 
tautology.  Hence  it  will  be  evident,  from  the  quantity 
of  matter  contained  in  each  of  these  printed  Lectures, 
that  a considerable  portion  of  the  spoken  Lecture  has 
not  been  given : and  this  will  explain  the  brevity  of 
some  of  the  discourses,  and  the  apparent  incompleteness 
with  which  many  of  the  topics  are  treated. 

A few  sermons  on  different  texts  in  the  Epistles  to 
the  Corinthians  have  already  appeared  in  the  three 
volumes  of  Mr.  Robertson’s  Sermons  ; but  it  has  been 
considered  best  to  include  them  in  this  volume  (although 
they  did  not  frrm  a part  of  this  series),  in  order  that 
the  Lecturer’s  view  of  the  Epistles  might  so  be  ren- 
dered more  complete.  Expositions  of  two  chapters  will 
be  found  to  be  omitted  altogether ; there  are  no  notes 
of  the  Lectures  on  these  chapters  available  for  publica- 
cation. 

After  concluding  these  Lectures,  Mr.  Robertson 
preached  one  more  Sunday  afternoon,  on  the  Parable 


X 


PREFACE. 


of  the  Barren  Fig-tree,  with  a solemnity  and  an  ear- 
nestness that  now  seem  to  have  been  prophetic.  His 
voice  was  never  afterwards  heard  from  the  pulpit  of 
Trinity  Chapel. 

J\rov.  15  1859. 


CONTENTS 


LECTURE 

TEXT 

PAGE 

L — 

(Introductory) 

— Acts  xviii.  1 

. 1 

11. — 

1 Corinthians, 

i.  1-3 

17 

III. 

>> 

i.  4-13 

. 21 

IV. 

>> 

i.  13-22  . 

. 25 

V. 

j > 

i.  23  . 

. 29 

VI. 

in.  1-10  . 

32 

VII. 

>> 

iii.  11-23 

. 39 

VIII. 

>> 

iv.  1-7 

47 

IX. 

iv.  7-21 

. 55 

X.— 

2 Corinthians, 

ii.  10,  11 

63 

XI. — 

1 Corinthians, 

V.  1-13 

. 73 

XII. 

j> 

Yi.  1-12  . 

81 

XIII. 

j j 

vi.  12-20  . 

. 89 

XIV. 

9> 

Yii.  1-22  . 

97 

XV. 

9 J 

Yii.  29-31  . 

. 108 

XVI. 

99 

Yiii.  1-7 

. 120 

XVII. 

99 

Yiii.  8-13 

. 126 

XVIII. 

99 

ix.  . 

. 140 

XIX. 

99 

X. 

. 147 

XX. 

99 

xi.  1-17  . 

. 155 

XXI. 

99 

xi.  18-34  . 

. 161 

XXII. 

99 

xii.  1-31 

. 165 

XXIII. 

99 

xii.  31;  xiii.  1-3 

. 170 

XXIV. 

99 

xiii.  4-13 

174 

XXV. 

99 

xiY.  1 

. 183 

XXVI. 

9 9 

xiY.  2-40 

. 192 

XXVII. 

99 

XY.  1-12  . 

. 201 

XXVIII. 

99 

XV.  13-20 

. 213 

XXIX. 

99 

XV.  21-34 

. 221 

XXX. 

99 

XV.  35-45 

. 230 

XXXI. 

99 

XV.  46-58  . 

. 237 

XXXII. 

99 

xvi.  1-9  . 

. 245 

XXXIII. 

99 

xvi.  10-24  . 

. 253 

[xi] 


XU 


CONTENTS, 


LECTURE 

TEXT 

PAGE 

XXXIV.— 

2 Corinthians, 

i.  1-14 

. . 260 

XXXV. 

9» 

i.  15-22 

. 267 

XXXVI. 

} > 

i.  23,  24;  ii.  1-5  . 

. 272 

XXXVII. 

ii.  6-11  ... 

. 278 

xxxvni. 

J J 

ii.  12-17;  iii.  1-3 

. 285 

XXXIX. 

99 

hi.  4-18 

. 292 

XL. 

99 

iv.  1-15  . 

, 299 

XLI. 

99 

iv.  16-18;  V.  1-3  . 

. 307 

XLII. 

99 

V.  4-11 

. 313 

XLIII. 

99 

V.  12-17 

. 320 

XLIV. 

99 

V.  14,  15 

. 327 

XLV. 

99 

V.  18-21 

339 

XLVI. 

99 

vi.  1-10  . 

. 345 

XLVII. 

99 

yi.  11-18 

. 351 

XLVIII. 

99 

vii.  1 . . 

. 358 

XLIX. 

99 

vii.  2-8  ... 

. 363 

L. 

9 9. 

vii.  9,  10  . 

. 370 

LI. 

99 

vii.  11-16 

. 377 

LII. 

9 9 

viii.  1-12  . 

. 386 

LIII. 

99 

viii.  13-15 

. 394 

LIV. 

99 

viii.  16-24;  ix.  1-15  . 

. 400 

LV. 

99 

X.  1-18 

. 409 

LVI. 

99 

xii.  1-21  . 

. 416 

LECTURES 


ON  THE 

EPISTLES  TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


INTRODUCTOEY  LECTURE. 


June  1,  1851. 

Acts,  xviii.  1.  — “ After  these  things  Paul  departed  from  Athens,  and 
came  to  Corinth.” 

It  has  been  customary  with  us  for  more  than  three 
years  to  devote  our  Sunday  afternoons  to  the  exposition 
throughout  of  some  one  Book  of  Scripture,  and  our 
plan  has  been  to  take  alternately  a Book  of  the  Old 
and  of  the  New  Testament.  I have  selected  for  our 
present  exposition  the  Epistles  of  the  Corinthians,  and 
this  for  several  reasons  — amongst  others,  for  variety, 
our  previous  work  having  been  entirely  historical.^ 
These  Epistles  are  in  a different  tone  altogether  ; they 
are  eminently  practical,  rich  in  Christian  casuistry. 
They  contain  the  answers  of  an  inspired  Apostle  to 
many  questions  which  arise  in  Christian  life. 

There  is,  too,  another  reason  for  this  selection.  The 
state  of  the  Corinthian  Church  resembles,  in  a re- 
markable degree,  the  state  of  the  Church  of  this  Town, 
in  the  present  day.  There  is  the  same  complicated 
civilization,  the  religious  quarrels  and  differences  of 
sect  are  alike,  the  same  questions  agitate  society,  and 
the  same  distinctions  of  class  exist  now  as  then.  For 


1 


* The  Book  oP  Genesis. 


2 


LECTURES  ON  THE  El’ISTLES 


the  heart  of  Humanity  is  the  same  in  all  times.  '^I'he 
])rinciples,  therefore,  which  St.  Paul  applied  to  the 
Corinthian  questions  will  apply  to  those  of  this  time. 
The  Epistles  to  the  Corinthians  are  a witness  that 
Keligion  does  not  confine  itself  to  the  inward  being  of 
man  alone,  nor  solely  to  the  examination  of  orthodox 
opinions.  No  ! Religion  is  Life,  and  right  instruction 
in  Religion  is  not  the  investigation  of  obsolete  and 
curious  doctrines,  but  the  application  of  sj)iritual  prin- 
ciples to  those  questions,  and  modes  of  action,  which 
concern  present  existence,  in  the  Market,  the  Shop,  the 
Study,  and  the  Street. 

Before  we  can  understand  these  Epistles,  it  is  plain 
that  we  must  know  to  whom,  and  under  what  circum- 
stances, they  were  written,  how  the  writer  himself  was 
circumstanced,  and  how  he  had  been  prei)ared  for  such 
a work  by  previous  discipline.  We  make,  therefore, 

I.  Preliminary  inquiries  respecting  Corinth,  viewed 
historically,  socially,  and  morally. 

II.  Respecting  the  Apostle  Paul. 

I.  Inquiry  respecting  Corinth. 

We  all  know  that  Corinth  was  a Greek  city,  but 
we  must  not  confound  the  town  to  which  St.  Paul 
wrote  with  that  ancient  Corinth  which  is  so  celebrated, 
and  with  which  we  are  so  familiar  in  Grecian  history. 
That  Corinth  had  been  destroyed  nearly  two  centuries 
before  the  time  of  these  Epistles,  by  the  Consul  Mum- 
mius,  B.  c.  146.  This  new  city,  in  which  the  Apostle 
labored,  had  been  built  upon  the  ruins  of  the  old  by 
Julius  Caesar,  not  half  a century  before  the  Christian 
Church  was  formed  there.  And  this  rebuilding  had 
taken  place  under  very  different  circumstances  — so 
different  as  to  constitute  a new  population. 

Greece,  in  the  time  of  the  Roman  dictators,  had  lost 
her  vigor.  She  had  become  worn  out,  corrupt,  and 
de])opu kited.  Tliere  were  not  men  enough  to  supply 
her  armies  It  was  necessary,  tlierefore,  if  Corinth 
were  to  rise  again,  to  peo])le  it  with  fresh  inhabitants, 
and  to  re-invigorate  her  constitutioii  with  new  blood. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


3 


This  was  done  ficom  Rome.  Julius  Caesar  sent  to  his 
re-elected  city  freedmen  of  Rome,  who  themselves,  or 
their  parents,  had  been  slaves.  From  this  importation 
there  arose  at  once  one  peculiar  characteristic  of  the 
new  population.  It  was  Roman,  not  Greek  ; it  was 
not  aristocratic,  but  democratic  ; and  it  held  within  it 
all  the  vices  as  well  as  all  the  advantages  of  a de- 
mocracy. 

Observe  the  peculiar  bearing  of  this  fact  on  the 
Epistles  to  the  Corinthians.  It  was  only  in  such  a 
city  as  Corinth  that  those  public  meetings  could  have 
taken  place,  in  which  each  one  exercised  his  gifts  with- 
out order  ; it  was  only  in  such  a city  that  the  turbu- 
lence, and  the  interruptions,  and  the  brawls  which  we 
read  of,  and  which  were  so  eminently  characteristic  of 
a democratic  society,  could  have  existed. 

It  was  only  in  such  a community  that  the  parties 
could  have  been  formed  which  marked  the  Christian 
Church  there  ; where  private  judgment,  independence, 
and  general  equality  existed,  out  of  which  parties 
had  to  struggle,  by  dint  of  force  and  vehemence, 
if  they  were  to  have  any  prominence  at  all.  Thus 
there  were  in  Corinth  the  advantages  of  a democracy ; 
for  instance,  unshackled  tliought ; but  also  its  vices, 
when  men  sprang  up  crying,  I am  of  Paul,  and  I of 
Apollos.” 

Again,  the  population  was  not  only  democratic,  but 
commercial.  This  was  necessitated  by  the  site  of 
Corinth.  The  neck  of  land  which  connects  northern 
and  southern  Greece  had  two  ports,  Cenchrem  on  the 
east,  and  Lechseum  on  the  west,  and  Corinth  lay  be- 
tween either  seaboard.  Thus  all  merchandise  from 
north  to  south  necessarily  passed  there,  and  all  com- 
merce from  east  to  west  flowed  through  it  also,  for  the 
other  way  round  the  Capes  Malea  and  Taenarum 
(Matapan),  was  both  longer  and  more  dangerous  for 
heavily  laden  ships.  Hence  it  was  not  by  an  imperial 
flat  but  by  natural  circumstances,  that  Corinth  became 
the  emporium  of  trade.  Once  rebuilt,  the  tide  of 
commerce,  which  had  been  forced  in  another  direction. 


4 


LECTUllES  ON  TI£E  EPISTLES 


surged  naturally  back  again,  and  streamed,  as  of  old, 
across  the  bridge  between  Europe  and  Asia. 

And  from  this  arose  another  feature  of  its  society.  Its 
aristocracy  was  one  not  of  birth,  but  of  wealth.  They 
were  merchants  not  manufacturers.  They  had  not 
the  calm  dignity  of  ancient  lineage,  nor  the  intellec- 
tual culture  of  a manufacturing  ])0])ulation.  For  let 
us  remember  that  manufactories  must  educate.  A 
manufacturer  may  not  be  a man  of  learning,  but  an 
educated  man  he  must  be,  by  the  very  necessity  of  his 
position.  And  his  intelligence,  contrivance,  invention, 
and  skill,  which  are  being  drawn  out  continually  every 
hour,  spread  their  influence  through  his  work  among 
the  very  lowest  of  his  artizans.  But,  on  the  other 
hand.  Trade  does  not  necessarily  need  more  than  a 
clear  head,  a knowledge  of  accounts,  and  a certain 
clever  sagacity.  It  becomes,  too,  a life  of  routine  at 
last,  which  neither,  necessarily,  teaches  one  moral 
truth,  nor,  necessarily,  enlarges  the  mind.  And  the 
danger  of  a mere  trading  existence  is  that  it  leaves  the 
soul  engaged  not  in  producing,  but  in  removing  pro- 
ductions from  one  place  to  another ; it  buries  the 
heart  in  the  task  of  money-getting  ; and  measuring 
the  worthiness  of  manhood  and  of  all  things  by  what 
they  severally  are  worthy  too  often  worships  Mammon 
instead  of  God.  Such  men  were  the  rich  merchants 
of  Corinth. 

In  addition  to  this  adoration  of  gold,  there  were  also 
all  the  demoralizing  influences  of  a trading  seaport. 
Men  from  all  quarters  of  the  globe  met  in  the  streets 
of  Corinth,  and  on  the  quays  of  its  two  harbors.  Now, 
one  reason  why  a population  is  always  demoralized  by 
an  influx  of  strangers  continually  going  and  coming  is 
this  ; a nation  shut  up  in  itself  may  be  very  narrow, 
and  have  its  own  vices,  but  it  will  also  have  its  own 
growth  of  native  virtues  ; but  when  peoples  mix,  and 
men  see  tlie  sanctities  of  their  childhood  dispensed 
witli,  and  otlier  sanctities,  wliich  they  despise,  substi- 
tuted ; wlien  they  see  the  ])rinciples  of  their  own 
country  ignored,  and  all  that  they  have  held  venerable 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


5 


made  profane  and  common,  the  natural  consequence  is 
that  they  begin  to  look  upon  the  manners,  religion, 
and  sanctities  of  their  own  birth-place  as  prejudices. 
They  do  not  get  instead  those  reverences  which  belong 
to  other  countries.  They  lose  their  own  holy  ties  and 
sanctions,  and  they  obtain  nothing  in  their  place.  And 
so  men,  when  they  mix  together,  corrupt  each  other  ; 
each  contributes  his  own  vices  and  his  irreverence  of 
the  other’s  good,  to  destroy  every  standard  of  good- 
ness, and  each  in  the  contact  loses  his  own  excellences. 
Exactly  as  our  young  English  men  and  Avomen  on 
their  return  from  foreign  countries  learn  to  sneer  at 
the  rigidity  of  English  purity,  yet  never  learn  instead 
even  that  urbanity  and  hospitality  which  foreigners 
have  as  a kind  of  equivalent  for  the  laxity  of  their 
morals.  Retaining  our  own  haughtiness  and  rudeness, 
and  misanthropy,  we  graft,  upon  our  natural  vices, 
sins  which  are  against  the  very  grain  of  our  own  nature 
and  temperament. 

Such  as  I have  described  it  Avas  the  moral  state  of 
Corinth.  The  city  Avas  the  hot-bed  of  the  world’s  evil, 
in  which  every  noxious  plant,  indigenous  or  trans- 
planted, rapidly  grew  and  flourished  ; where  luxury 
and  sensuality  throve  rankly,  stimulated  by  the  gam- 
bling spirit  of  commercial  life,  till  Corinth,  now  in  the 
Apostle’s  time,  as  in  previous  centuries,  became  a 
proverbial  name  for  moral  corruption. 

Another  element  in  the  city  was  the  Greek  popu- 
lation. To  understand  the  nature  of  this  we  must 
make  a distinction.  I have  already  said  that  Greece 
was  tainted  to  the  core.  Her  ancient  patriotism  was 
gone.  Her  valor  was  no  more.  Her  statesmen  were 
no  longer  pure  in  policy  as  in  eloquence.  Her  poets 
had  died  with  her  disgrace.  She  had  but  the  remem- 
brance of  what  had  been.  Foreign  conquest  had 
broken  her  spirit.  Despair  had  settled  on  her  ener- 
gies. Loss  of  liberty  had  ended  in  loss  of  manhood. 
Her  children  felt  the  Roman  Colossus  bestriding  their 
once  beloved  country.  The  last  and  most  indispensa- 
ble element  of  goodness  had  perished,  for  hope  Avas 
1* 


6 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


dead.  Tliey  buried  themselves  in  stagnancy.  But 
remark  that  amid  this  universal  degeneracy  there  were 
two  classes.  There  were,  first,  the  uncultivated  and 
the  poor,  to  whom  the  ancient  glories  of  their  land 
were  yet  dear,  to  whom  the  old  religion  was  not 
merely  hereditary,  but  true  and  living  still ; whose 
imagination  still  saw  the  solemn  conclave  of  their 
ancient  deities  on  Mount  Olympus,  and  still  heard 
Pan,  and  the  Fauns,  and  the  wood  gods  piping  in  the 
groves.  Such  were  they  who  in  Lystria  came  forth 
to  meet  Paul  and  Barnabas,  and  believed  them  to  be 
Jupiter  and  Mercury.  With  such,  paganism  was  still 
tenaciously  believed,  just  as  in  England  now,  the  faith 
in  witchcraft,  spells,  and  the  magical  virtue  of  bap- 
tismal water,  banished  from  the  towns,  survives  and 
lingers  among  our  rural  population.  At  this  period  it 
was  with  that  portion  of  heathenism  alone,  that  Chris- 
tianity came  in  contact,  to  meet  a foe. 

Very  different,  however,  was  the  state  of  the  culti- 
vated and  the  rich.  They  had  lost  their  religion. 
Their  civilization  and  their  knowledge  of  the  world  had 
destroyed  that ; and  that  being  lost,  they  retained  no 
natural  vent  for  the  energies  of  the  restless  Greek  char- 
acter. Hence  out  of  that  high  state  of  intellectual 
culture  there  arose  a craving  for  Wisdom  ; ” not  the 
wisdom  which  Solomon  spoke  of,  but  wisdom  in  the 
sense  of  intellectual  speculation.  The  energy  which 
had  found  a safe  outlet  in  War  now  wasted  itself  in  the 
Amphitheatre.  The  enthusiasm  which  had  been  stimu- 
lated by  the  noble  eloquence  of  patriotism  now  preyed 
on  glittering  rhetoric.  They  spent  their  days  in  tour- 
naments of  speeches,  and  exulted  in  gladiatorial  ora- 
tory. They  would  not  even  listen  to  a sermon  from 
St.  Paul,  unless  it  were  clothed  in  dazzling  words  and 
full  of  brilliant  thought.  They  were  in  a state  not  un- 
common now  with  fine  intellects  whose  action  is 
cram[)ed.  Religion,  instead  of  being  solid  food  for  the 
soul,  had  become  an  intellectual  banquet.  That  was 
another  dilficulty  with  which  Christianity  had  to 
deal. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


7 


The  next  thing  we  observe  as  influencing  Corinthian 
society  is,  that  it  was  the  seat  of  a Roman  provincial 
government.  There  was  there  a deputy,  that  is,  a pro- 
consul.  Gallio  was  deputy  of  Achaia.”  Let  it  sur- 
prise no  one  if  I say  that  this  was  an  influence  favor- 
able to  Christianity.  The  doctrine  of  Christ  had  not  as 
yet  come  into  direct  antagonism  with  Heathenism.  It 
is  true  that  throughout  the  Acts  we  read  of  persecution 
coming  from  the  Greeks,  but  at  the  same  time  we  in- 
variably find  that  it  was  the  Jews  who  had  “ stirred  up 
the  Greeks.”  The  persecution  always  arose  first  on 
the  part  of  the  J ews ; and,  indeed,  until  it  became  evi- 
dent that  in  Christianity  there  was  a Power  before 
which  all  the  principalities  of  evil,  all  tyranny  and 
wrong,  must  perish,  the  Roman  magistrates  generally 
defended  it,  and  interposed  their  authority  between  the 
Christians  and  their  fierce  enemies.  A signal  instance 
of  this  is  related  in  this  chapter.  Gallio,  the  Roman 
proconsul,  dismisses  the  charge  brought  against  the 
Christians.  And  when  Paul  was  now  about  to  open 
his  mouth,  Gallio  said  unto  the  Jews,  If  it  were  a mat- 
ter of  wrong  or  wicked  lewdness,  O ye  Jews,  reason 
would  that  I should  bear  with  you  : But  if  it  be  a ques- 
tion of  words  and  names,  and  of  your  law,  look  ye  to 
it ; for  I will  be  no  judge  of  such  matters.” 

And  his  judgment  was  followed  by  a similar  verdict 
from  the  people  ; for  Sosthenes,  the  ringleader  of  the 
accusation,  was  beaten  by  the  mob  before  the  judgment 
seat.  And  ‘‘  Gallio  cared  for  none  of  these  things,” 
that  is,  he  took  no  notice  of  them,  he  would  not  inter- 
fere ; he  was,  perhaps,  even  glad  that  a kind  of  wild, 
irregular  justice  was  administered  to  one  who  had  been 
foremost  in  bringing  an  unjust  charge.  So  that  instead 
of  Gallio  being,  as  the  commentators  make  him,  a sort 
of  type  of  religious  lukewarmness,  he  is  really  a speci- 
men of  an  upright  Roman  magistrate.  But  what  prin- 
cipally concerns  us  in  the  story  now  is,  that  it  is  an 
example  of  the  way  in  which  the  existence  of  the  Ro- 
man Government  at  Corinth  was,  on  the  whole,  an 
advantage  for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel. 


8 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


The  last  element  in  this  complex  community  was  the 
Jews.  Every  city,  Greek  or  Roman,  at  this  time  was 
rife  with  them.  Then,  as  now,  they  had  that  national 
peculiarity  which  scatters  them  among  all  nations,  while 
it  prevents  them  from  amalgamating  with  any,  whicli 
makes  them  worshippers  of  Mammon,  and  yet  withal, 
ready  to  suffer  all  things,  and  even  to  die  for  their  faitli. 
In  their  way  they  were  religious ; hut  it  was  a blind 
and  bio’oted  adherence  to  the  sensuous  side  of  rehVion. 
They  had  almost  ceased  to  believe  in  a living  God,  but 
they  were  strenuous  believers  in  the  virtue  of  ordi- 
nances. God  to  them  only  existed  for  the  benefit  of 
the  Jewish  nation.  To  them  a Messiah  must  be  a 
World-Prince.  To  them  a new  revelation  could  only 
be  substantiated  by  marvels  and  miracles.  To  them  it 
could  have  no  self-evident  spiritual  light ; and  St.  Paul, 
in  the  first  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  describes  the  dif- 
ficulty which  this  tendency  put  in  the  way  of  the 
progress  of  the  Gospel  among  them  thus  : The  Jews 
require  a sign.” 

II.  Respecting  the  Apostle  Paul. 

To  this  society,  so  constituted,  so  complex,  so  mani- 
fold, St.  Paul  came,  assured  that  he  was  in  possession 
of  a truth  which  was  adapted  and  addressed  to  all,  ‘‘  the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  every  one  that  believ- 
eth,  to  the  Jew  first,  and  also  to  the  Gentile.” 

Now,  for  this  work  he  was  peculiarly  assisted  and 
prepared. 

1.  By  the  fellowship  of  Aquila  and  Priscilla.  We 
read  that  when  he  came  to  Corinth  he  found  a certain 
Jew  named  Aquila,  lately  come  from  Italy  with  his 
wife  Priscilla,  because  that  Claudius  had  commanded 
all  the  Jews  to  depart  from  Rome  ; and  that  he  came 
to  them. 

St.  Ihiul  had  a peculiar  gift  from  God,  the  power  of 
doing  without  those  solaces  which  ordinary  men  re- 
({uire.  Ibit  we  should  greatly  mistake  that  noble  heart 
and  rare  nature,  if  we  conceived  of  it  as  hard,  stern, 
and  inc{ij);ibl(‘.  ol’  tender  human  sympathies,  iiemem- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


9 


ber  how,  when  anxious  about  these  very  Corinthians, 
he  felt  no  rest  when  he  found  not  Titus  his  brother, 
at  Troas.”  Recollect  his  gentle  yearnings  after  the 
recovery  of  Epaphroditus.  Such  an  one  thrown  alone 
upon  a teeming,  busy,  commercial  population,  as  he 
Avas  at  Corinth,  would  have  felt  crushed.  Alone  he 
had  been  left,  for  he  had  sent  back  his  usual  companions 
on  several  missions.  His  spirit  had  been  pressed  within 
him  at  Athens  when  he  saw  the  city  wholly  given  to 
idolatry.  But  that  was  not  so  oppressive  as  the  sight 
of  human  masses,  crowding,  hurrying,  driving  together, 
all  engaged  in  the  mere  business  of  getting  rich,  or  in 
the  more  de^radino;  work  of  seeking  mere  sensual  en- 
joyment.  Nothing  so  depresses  as  that.  In  this  crisis, 
Providential  arrangements  had  prepared  for  him  the 
assistance  of  Priscilla  and  Aquila.  In  their  house  he 
found  a home  : in  their  society,  companionship.  Alto- 
gether with  them,  he  gained  that  refreshment  for  his 
spirit,  without  which  it  would  have  been  perilous 
for  him  to  have  entered  on  his  work  in  Corinth. 

2.  He  was  sustained  by  manual  work.  He  wrought 
with  his  friends  as  a tent-maker.  That  was  his  craft.” 
For  by  the  rabbinical  law,  all  Jews  were  taught  a 
trade.  One  rabbi  had  said,  that  he  who  did  not  teach 
his  son  a trade,  instructed  him  to  steal.  Another  had 
declared  that  the  study  of  theology  along  with  a trade 
was  good  for  the  soul,  and  without  it  a temptation  from 
the  devil.  So,  too,  it  was  the  custom  of  the  monastic 
institutions  to  compel  every  brother  to  work,  not  only 
for  the  purpose  of  supporting  the  monastery,  but  also 
to  prevent  the  entrance  of  evil  thoughts.  A wise  les- 
son ! For  in  a life  like  that  of  Corinth,  in  gaiety,  or 
the  merely  thoughtful  existence,  in  that  state  of  leisure 
to  which  so  many  minds  are  exposed,  woe  and  trial  to 
the  spirit  that  has  nothing /or  the  hands  to  do  ! Misery 
to  him  or  her  who  emancipates  himself  or  herself  from 
the  universal  law,  ‘‘  In  the  sweat  of  thy  brow  shalt 
thou  eat  bread.”  Evil  thoughts,  despondency,  sensual 
feelings,  sin  in  every  shape  is  before  him,  to  beset  and 
madden,  often  to  ruin  him. 


10 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


3.  By  the  rich  experience  he  lind  gained  in  Athens. 
There  the  Apostle  had  met  the  pliilosopliers  on  their 
own  gronnd.  He  had  sliown  tliem  tliat  there  was  a 
want  in  Human  Nature  to  wliich  tlie  Gosj)e]  was 
adapted ; he  liad  spoken  of  their  cravings  after  the 
Unknown  ; lie  had  declared  that  he  had  to  jireach  to 
them  that  which  they,  unconsciously,  desired  : he  had 
stripped  their  worship  of  its  anthropomorphism,  and 
had  manifested  to  them  that  the  residuum  was  the 
germ  of  Christianity.  And  his  speech  was  triumphant 
as  oratory,  as  logic,  and  as  a specimen  of  jdiilosophic 
thought ; but  in  its  bearing  on  conversion,  it  was  un- 
successful. His  work  at  Athens  was  a failure  ; Dio- 
nysius and  a few  women  are  all  we  read  of  as  con- 
verted. There  was  no  church  at  Athens. 

Richly  taught  by  this,  he  came  to  Corinth  and 
preached  no  longer  to  the  wise,  the  learned,  or  the 
rich.  Ye  see  your  calling,  brethren,”  he  said,  ‘‘  how 
that  not  many  wise  men  after  the  flesh,  not  many 
mighty,  not  many  noble  are  called.”  God  had  chosen 
the  poor  of  this  world  to  be  rich  in  faith.  He  no  longer 
confronted  the  philosojiher  on  his  own  ground,  or  tried 
to  accommodate  the  Gospel  to  his  tastes : and  then 
that  memorable  resolve  is  recorded,  “ I determined  to 
know  nothing  among  you,  save  Jesus  Christ  and  Him 
crucified.”  Not  the  crucifixion  of  Christ;  but  Christ, 
and  that  Christ  crucified.  He  preached  Christ,  though 
crucified ; Christ  crucified,  though  the  Greeks  might 
mock  and  the  Jews  reject  Him  with  scorn  — Christ  as 
Christianity;  Christ  His  own  evidence.  We  know 
the  result ; the  Church  of  Corinth,  the  largest  and 
noblest  harvest  ever  given  to  ministerial  toil. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


11 


LECTURE  II. 

June  8,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  i.  1 - 3. — “ Paul  called  to  be  an  Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ 
through  the  will  of  God.  and  Sosthenes  our  brother, — Unto  the 
chui-ch  of  God  which  is  at  Corinth,  to  them  that  are  sanctified  in 
Christ  Jesus,  called  to  be  saints,  with  all  that  in  every  place  call 
upon  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  both  theirs  and  ours  : — 
Grace  be  unto  you,  and  peace  from  God  our  Father,  and  from  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.” 


Our  discourse  last  Sunday  put  us  in  possession  of 
the  state  of  Corinth  when  the  Apostle  entered  it.  We 
know  what  Corinth  was  intellectually,  politically, 
morally,  and  socially.  We  learned  that  it  contained 
a democratic  population.  We  found  it  commercial, 
rich,  and  immoral  from  its  being  a trading  seaport. 
We  spoke  of  its  Roman  government,  which  on  the 
whole  acted  fairly  at  that  time  toward  Christianity  ; 
of  its  Greek  inhabitants,  of  whom  the  richer  were 
sceptics  who  had  lost  their  religion,  and  the  poorer 
still  full  of  superstitions,  as  we  discover  from  the  no- 
tices of  heathen  sacrifices  which  pervade  these  Epistles. 
And  the  last  element  was  the  Jewish  population,  who 
were  devoted  to  a religion  of  signs  and  ordinances. 

Our  subject  for  to-day  comprises  the  first  three 
verses  of  this  chapter.  From  these  we  take  three 
points  for  investigation  — 

I.  The  designation  of  the  writers. 

II.  The  description  of  the  persons  addressed. 

III.  The  benediction. 

I.  The  designation  of  the  writers.  Paul  ‘‘  an  Apos- 
tle ” — Sosthenes  ‘‘our  brother.”  An  apostle  means 
“ one  sent,”  a missionary  to  teach  the  truth  committed 


12 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


to  liim ; and  the  authority  of  this  apostolic  mission 
St.  Paul  substantiates  in  the  words  ‘‘  called  to  be  an 
Apostle  of  Jesus  Christ  through  the  will  of  God^ 
There  was  a necessity  for  this  vindication  of  his 
Apostleship.  At  the  time  of  writing  this  Epistle  he 
was  at  Ephesus,  having  left  Corinth  after  a stay  of 
eighteen  months.  There  he  was  informed  of  the  state 
of  the  Church  in  Achaia  by  those  of  the  house  of 
Chloe,  a Christian  lady,  and  by  letters  from  them- 
selves. From  this  correspondence  he  learnt  that  his 
authority  was  questioned  ; — and  so  St.  Paul,  unjustly 
treated  and  calumniated,  opens  his  Epistle  with  these 
words,  written  partly  in  self-defence  — ‘‘Called  to  be 
an  apostle  by  the  will  of  God.”  In  the  firm  conviction 
of  that  truth  lay  all  his  power.  No  man  felt  more 
strongly  than  St.  Paul  his  own  insignificance.  He 
told  his  converts  again  and  again  that  he  “ was  not 
meet  to  be  called  an  Apostle that  he  was  “ the  least 
of  all  saints,”  that  he  was  the  “ chief  of  sinners.” 
And  yet,  intensely  as  he  felt  all  this,  more  deeply  did 
he  feel  something  above  and  beyond  all  this,  that  he 
was  God’s  messenger,  that  his  was  a true  Apostleship, 
that  he  had  been  truly  commissioned  by  the  King  ; 
and  hence  he  speaks  with  courage  and  with  freedom. 
His  words  were  not  his  own,  but  His  who  had  sent 
him.  Imagine  that  conception  dawning  on  his  spirit, 
imagine,  if  you  can,  that  light  suddenly  struck  out  of 
his  own  mind  in  the  midst  of  his  despondency,  and 
then  you  will  no  longer  wonder  at  the  almost  joyful 
boldness  with  which  he  stood  firm,  as  on  a rock, 
against  the  slander  of  his  enemies,  and  the  doubtful- 
ness of  his  friends.  Now,  unless  this  is  felt  by  us, 
our  life  and  work  has  lost  its  impulse.  If  we  think 
of  our  profession  or  line  of  action,  simply  as  arising 
from  our  own  independent  choice,  or  from  chance,  in- 
stantly we  are  paralyzed,  and  our  energies  refuse  to 
act  vigorously.  But  what  was  it  which  nerved  the 
A])Ostle’s  soul  to  bear  reproach  and  false  witness? 
Was  it  not  this?  1 have  a mission:  “I  am  called  to 
be  an  Apostle  through  the  will  of  God.”  Well,  this 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


13 


should  be  our  strength.  Called  to  be  a Carpenter,  a 
Politician,  a Tradesman,  a Physician  — he  is  irrev- 
erent who  believes  that  ? God  sent  me  here  to  cut 
wood,  to  direct  justly,  to  make  shoes,  to  teach  children  ; 
— Why  should  not  each  and  all  of  us  feel  that  ? It 
is  one  of  the  greatest  truths  on  which  we  can  rest  our 
life,  and  by  which  we  can  invigorate  our  work.  But 
we  get  rid  of  it  by  claiming  it  exclusively  for  St.  Paul. 
We  say  that  God  called  the  Apostles,  but  does  not 
speak  to  us.  We  say  they  were  inspired  and  lifted 
above  ordinary  Humanity.  But  observe  the  modesty 
of  his  apostolic  claim.  He  does  not  say,  I am  in- 
fallible,” but  that  the  Will  of  God  has  sent  him  as  It 
had  sent  others.  He  did  not  wish  that  his  people 
should  receive  his  truth  because  he,  the  Apostle,  had 
said  it,  but  because  it  was  truth.  He  did  not  seek  to 
bind  men,  as  if  they  were  destitute  of  reasoning,  to 
any  avxog  as  is  set  up  now  by  Evangelicalism  or 
Popery,  but  throughout  the  whole  of  this  Epistle  he 
uses  arguments,  he  appeals  to  reason  and  to  sense. 
He  convinces  them  that  he  was  an  Apostle,  not  by  dec- 
larations that  they  must  believe  him,  but  by  appealing 
to  the  truth  he  had  taught  — “by  manifestation  of  the 
truth,  commending  ourselves  to  every  man’s  conscience 
in  the  sight  of  God.”  Further,  we  see  in  the  fact  of 
St.  Paul’s  joining  with  himself  Sosthenes,  and  calling 
him  his  brother,  another  proof  of  his  desire  to  avoid 
erecting  himself  as  the  sole  guide  of  the  Church.  He 
sends  the  Epistle  from  himself  and  Sosthenes.  Is  that 
like  one  who  desired  to  be  Lord  alone  over  God’s 
heritage  ? ‘‘I  am  an  Apostle  — sent  by  the  will  of 

God ; but  Sosthenes  is  my  brother.”  Of  Sosthenes 
himself,  nothing  certain  is  known.  He  is  supposed  by 
some  to  be  the  Sosthenes  of  Acts  xvii.,  the  persecutor, 
the  ringleader  of  the  Jews  against  the  Christians,  who 
was  beaten  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Gallio.  If  so, 
see  what  a conqueror  St.  Paul,  or  rather,  Christianity 
had  become.  Like  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles,  Sos- 
thenes now  built  up  the  faith  which  once  he  destroyed. 
But,  in  truth,  we  know  nothing  accurately,  except  that 


14 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


he  was  a Corinthian  known  to  the  persons  addressed, 
and  now  with  Paul  at  Ephesus.  Tlie  proper  reflection 
from  the  fact  of  his  being  joined  witli  the  Apostle,  is 
the  humility  of  St.  Paul.  Pie  never  tried  to  make  a 
Party  or  form  a Sect ; he  never  even  tliouglit  of  placing 
liimself  above  them  as  an  infallible  and  autocratic 
Pope. 

II.  The  persons  addressed.  The  Church  of  God 
which  is  at  Corinth.”  The  Church  ! What  is  the 
Church  ? That  question  lies  below  all  the  theological 
differences  of  the  day.  The  Church,  according  to  the 
derivation  of  the  word,  means  the  house  of  God.  It 
is  that  Body  of  men  in  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  dwells 
as  the  Source  of  their  excellence,  and  who  exist  on 
earth  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting  the  Divine  Life  and 
the  hidden  order  of  Humanity  : to  destroy  evil  and  to 
assimilate  Humanity  to  God,  to  penetrate  and  purify 
the  world,  and  as  salt,  preserve  it  from  corruption.  It 
has  an  existence  continuous  throughout  the  ages  ; con- 
tinuous however,  not  on  the  principles  of  hereditary 
succession  or  of  human  election,  as  in  an  ordinary 
corporation,  but  on  the  principle  of  spiritual  similarity 
of  character.^  The  Apostle  Paul  asserted  this  spirit- 
ual succession  when  he  said  that  the  seed  of  Abraham 
were  to  be  reckoned,  not  on  his  lineal  descendants,  but 
as  inheritors  of  his  faith. f And  Christ,  too,  meant 
the  same  when  he  told  the  Jews  that  out  of  the  stones 
before  Him  God  could  raise  up  children  unto  Abraham. 
There  is,  however,  a Church  visible,  and  a Church 
invisible  ; the  latter  consists  of  those  spiritual  persons 
who  fulfil  the  notion  of  the  Ideal  Church  ; the  former 
is  the  Church  as  it  exists  in  any  particular  age,  em- 
bracing within  it  all  who  profess  Christianity,  whether 
they  be  ])roper  or  improper  members  of  its  body.  Of 
the  invisible  Church,  the  writer  of  the  Epistle  to  the 
Hebrews  speaks  ; :j:  and  St.  Paul  also  alludes  to  this  in 
the  description  which  he  gives  of  the  several  churches, 


♦ Jol.n,  i.  13. 


t Gal.  111.  7. 


t lleb.  xii.  23. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


15 


to  whom  he  WTites  in  language  which  certainly  far 
transcended  their  actual  state.  As,  for  instance,  in 
this  Epistle,  he  speaks  of  them  as  ‘‘  called  to  he 
saints,”  as  temples  of  the  Holy  Ghost,”  and  then 
in  another  place  describes  them  in  their  actual  state, 
as  carnal,  and  walking  as  men.”  Again,  it  is  of  the 
visible  Church  he  writes,  when  he  reproves'  their  par- 
ticular errors ; and  Christ,  too,  speaks  of  the  same  in 
such  parables  as  that  of  the  net  gathering  in  fishes 
both  good  and  bad,  and  the  field  of  wheat  which  was 
mingled  with  tares. 

An  illustration  may  make  this  plain.  The  abstract 
conception  of  a river  is  that  of  a stream  of  pure,  un- 
mixed water,  but  the  actual  river  is  the  Rhine,  or  the 
Rhone,  or  the  Thames,  muddy  and  discolored,  and 
charged  with  impurity ; and  the  conception  of  this  or 
that  river  necessarily  contains  within  it  these  peculiari- 
ties. So  of  the  church  of  Christ.  Abstractedly,  and 
invisibly,  it  is  a kingdom  of  God  in  which  no  evil  is  ; 
in  the  concrete,  and  actually,  it  is  the  church  of  Cor- 
inth, of  Rome,  or  of  England,  tainted  with  impurity  ; 
and  yet  just  as  the  mudded  Rhone  is  really  the  Rhone, 
and  not  mud  and  Rhone,  so  there  are  not  two  churches, 
the  church  of  Corinth  and  the  false  church  with  it,  but 
one  visible  Church,  in  which  the  invisible  lies  con- 
cealed. This  principle  is  taught  in  the  parable,  which 
represents  the  Church  as  a Vine.  There  are  not  two 
vines,  but  one  ; and  the  withered  branches,  which  shall 
be  cut  off  hereafter,  are  really  for  the  present  part  and 
portion  of  the  Vine.  So  far  then,  it  appears,  that  in 
any  age,  the  visible  Church  is,  properly  speaking,  the 
Church. 

But  beyond  the  limits  of  the  Visible,  is  there  no 
true  Church  ? Are  Plato,  Socrates,  Marcos  Antonnius, 
and  such  as  they,  to  be  reckoned  by  us  as  lost  ? Surely 
not.  The  Church  exists  for  the  purpose  of  educating 
souls  for  heaven ; but  it  would  be  a perversion  of  this 
purpose  were  we  to  think  that  goodness  will  not  be 
received  by  God,  because  it  has  not  been  educated  in 
the  Church.  Goodness  is  goodness,  find  it  where  we 


16 


LECTURES  gN  THE  EPISTLES 


may.  A vineyard  exists  for  tlie  purpose  of  nurturing 
vines,  but  he  would  be  a strange  vine-dresser  who  de- 
nied the  reality  of  grapes  because  tliey  had  ripened 
under  a less  genial  soil,  and  beyond  the  precincts  of  the 
vineyard.  The  truth  is,  that  the  Eternal  Word  has 
communicated  himself  to  man  in  the  ex])ressed  Thought 
of  God,  th5  Life  of  Christ.  That  to  whom  that  Light 
has  been  manifested  are  Christians.  But  that  Word  has 
communicated  Himself  silently  to  human  minds,  on 
which  the  manifested  Light  has  never  shone.  Such 
men  lived  with  God,  and  were  guided  by  His  Spirit. 
They  entered  into  the  Invisible;  they  lived  by  Faith. 
They  were  beyond  their  generation.  They  were  not 
of  the  world.  The  Eternal  Word  dwelt  within  them. 
For  the  Light  that  shone  forth  in  a full  blaze  in  Christ, 
lights  also,  we  are  told,  every  man  that  cometh  into 
the  world.”  Instances  that  lead  us  to  this  truth  are 
given  in  the  Scriptures  of  persons  beyond  the  pale  of 
the  Church,  who,  before  their  acquaintance  with  the 
Jewish  nation,  had  been  in  the  habit  of  receiving  spirit- 
ual communications  of  their  own  from  God : such  were 
Melchisedec,  Job,  Rahab,  and  Nebuchadnezzar. 

But  from  this  dio-ression,  let  us  return  to  the  visible 
Church  of  which  the  Church  of  Corinth  formed  a part. 
It  existed  as  we  have  said  to  exhibit  what  Humanity 
should  be,  to  represent  the  Life  Divine  on  earth,  and 
that  chiefly  in  these  particulars  : — 

1.  Self-devotion  — To  them  that  are  sanctified  in 
Christ  Jesus.” 

2.  Sanctity — Called  to  be  saints.” 

3.  Universality  — With  all  that  in  every  place  call 
on  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.” 

4.  Unity — Of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  both  theirs 
and  ours;  ” for  Christ  was  their  common  centre,  and 
every  cliurch  felt  united  into  one  body  when  they  knew 
that  He  belonged  to  all^  that  they  all  had  one  Spirit, 
one  Lord,  one  Faitli,  one  Baptism,  one  God  and  Father 
in  Jesus  Christ. 

First,  tlien,  the  Church  exists  to  exhibit  self-devo- 
tion. Tliey  were  sanctified  in  Christ  Jesus.”  Now 


TO  THE  COEINTHIANS. 


IT 


the  true  meaning  of  to  sanctify  ” is  to  set  apart,  and 
hence  to  consecrate  to  any  work.  Thus  spoke  Christ, 

For  their  sakes  I sanctify,  set  apart,  devote  Myself.” 
His  life  was  a voluntary  devotion  of  Himself  even  to 
the  death,  as  well  to  save  others  as  to  bear  witness  to 
the  truth.  It  is  this  attribute  of  the  Divine  nature  in 
Humanity  that  the  Church  exists  to  exhibit  now  on 
earth.  And  then  it  is  a church  most  truly  when  it  is 
most  plainly  devoted.  Thus  it  was  in  martyr  times, 
when  the  death  and  persecuted  existence  of  the  saints 
of  God  were  at  once  the  life-blood  of  the  Church  and 
a testimony  to  the  truth  of  its  Faith.  But  then  it  is 
not,  plainly,  the  Church,  where  bishops  and  priests  are 
striving  to  aggrandize  their  own  power,  and  seeking  to 
impress  men  with  the  idea  of  the  infallibility  of  their 
office.  When  the  ecclesiastical  dignity  makes  godliness 
a means  of  gain,  or  when  priestcraft  exercises  lordship 
over  the  heritage  of  God,  then  it  is  falsifying  its  mission, 
for  it  is  existing  to  establish,  instead  of  to  destroy,  self- 
ishness. 

Secondly,  It  exists  to  establish  sanctity. 

The  Church  of  Corinth  was  formed,  as  we  have  said, 
of  peculiar  elements.  It  arose  out  of  a democratic,  and 
therefore  a factious,  community  It  sprang  out  of  an 
extremely  corrupt  society,  where  pride  of  wealth 
abounded,  and  where  superstition  and  scepticism  looked 
one  another  in  the  face.  It  developed  itself  in  the 
midst  of  a Judaism  which  demanded  visible  proofs  of  a 
divine  mission.  Ancient  vices  still  infected  the  Chris- 
tian converts.  They  carried  into  the  Church  the  sa- 
vor of  their  old  life,  for  the  wine-skin  will  long  retain 
the  flavor  with  which  it  has  once  been  imbued.  We 
find  from  these  epistles  that  gross  immorality  still 
existed,  and  was  even  considered  a thing  to  boast  of. 
We  find  their  old  philosophy  still  coloring  their  Chris- 
tianity, for  on  the  foundation  of  the  oriental  idea  that 
the  body  was  the  source  of  all  sin,  they  denied  a future 
resurrection.  We  find  the  insolence  of  wealth  at  the 
Lord’s  Supper.  We  find  spiritual  gifts  abused  by  being 
exhibited  for  the  sake  of  ostentation.  Such  was  the 
2* 


18 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Church  of  Corinth  ! This  is  the  Early  Church  so 
boasted  of  by  some  ! Yet  nowhere  do  we  find,  “ These 
are  not  of  the  Church  ; these  are  of  the  Churcli.” 
Rather  all  are  the  Church  — the  profligate  brother,  the 
proud  rich  man,  the  speculative  philosopher,  the  mere 
partizan,  the  superstitious  and  the  seeker  after  signs,  all 
are  called  to  be  saints.”  All  were  temples  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  though  possibly  admonished  that  they 
might  be  defiling  that  temple.  Know  ye  not  that 
your  bodies  are  the  temples  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ” — 
that  Christ  is  in  you^  except  ye  be  reprobates  ? ” In 
the  face  of  this  the  hypothetical  view  of  Baptism  is  im- 
possible. Publicans  and  sinners  may  be  in  the  Church, 
and  yet  they  are  called  God’s  children.  His  children, 
redeemed  though  not  sanctified  ; His  people  pardoned 
and  reconciled  by  rights  though  the  reconciliation  and 
the  pardon  are  not  theirs  in  fact^  unless  they  accept  it. 
For  it  is  possible  to  open  the  doors  of  the  prison,  and 
yet  for  the  prisoner  to  refuse  deliverance ; it  is  possible 
to  forgive  an  injury,  and  yet  for  the  injurer  to  retain 
his  anger,  and  then  reconciliation  and  friendship,  Avhich 
are  things  of  two  sides,  are  incomplete.  Nevertheless, 
all  are  designed  for  holiness,  all  of  the  professing  Church 
are  called  to  be  saints.”  Hence  the  Church  of  Christ 
is  a visible  body  of  men  providentially  elected  out  of 
the  world  to  exhibit  holiness,  some  of  whom  really 
manifest  it  in  this  life,  while  others  do  not ; and  the 
mission  of  this  society  is  to  put  down  evil. 

Thirdly,  Its  universality.  With  all  who,  in  every 
place,  call  upon  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  both  theirs 
and  ours.” 

The  Corinthian  Church  was,  according  to  these 
words  of  the  Apostle,  not  an  exclusive  avraoirig  Church, 
but  only  a part  of  the  Church  universal,  as  a river  is 
of  the  sea.  He  allowed  it  no  proud  superiority.  He 
would  not  permit  it  to  think  of  itself  as  more  spiritual 
or  as  pf)ssessing  higher  dignity  than  the  Church  at 
Jerusalem  or  Jdiessalonica.  They  were  called  to  be 
saints  along  with,  and  on  a level  with,  all  who  named 
the  Name  of  Christ. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


19 


Is  this  our  idea  when  we  set  up  Anglicanism  against 
Romanism,  and  make  England  the  centre  of  unity  in- 
stead of  Rome  ? There  is  no  centre  of  unity  but 
Christ.  We  go  to  God  with  proud  notions  of  our 
spirituality  and  our  claims.  We  boast  ourselves  of  our 
advantages  over  Dissenters  and  Romanists.  Whereas 
the  same  God  is  theirs  and  ours  ; ” the  same  Christ 
is  theirs  and  ours.”  Oh  ! only  so  far  as  we  feel  that 
God  is  our  Father  not  my  Father,  and  Christ  our 
Saviour  not  my  Saviour,  do  we  realize  the  idea  of  the 
Church.  The  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  both 
theirs  and  ours.”  What  a death  blow  to  Judaism  and 
party  spirit  in  Corinth  ! 

Lastly,  unity. 

Christ  was  theirs  and  ours.  He  was  the  Saviour  of 
all,  and  the  common  Supporter  of  all.  Though  indi- 
.vidual  churches  might  differ,  and  though  sects  might 
divide  even  those  churches,  and  though  each  might  have 
a distinct  truth,  and  manifest  distinct  gifts,  yet  Christ 
existed  in  all.  The  same  one  Spirit,  His  Spirit,  per- 
vaded all,  and  strengthened  all,  and  bound  all  together 
into  a living  and  invisible  unity.  Each  in  their  several 
ways  contributed  to  build  up  the  same  building  on  the 
same  Foundation  ; each  in  their  various  ways  were  dis- 
tinct members  of  Christ’s  Body,  performing  different 
offices,  yet  knit  into  One  under  the  same  Head ; and  ► 
the  very  variety  produced  a more  perfect  and  abiding 
unity. 

HI.  The  Benediction.  ‘‘  Grace  and  peace  from 
God  our  Father  and  from  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.” 

This  is,  if  you  will,  a formula,  but  forms  like  this 
teach  much ; they  tell  of  the  Spirit  from  which  they 
originate.  The  heathen  commenced  their  letters  with 
the  salutation,  Health  ! ” There  is  a life  of  the  Flesh, 
and  there  is  a life  of  the  Spirit  — a truer,  more  real, 
and  a higher  Life,  and  above  and  beyond  all  things  the 
Apostle  wished  them  this.  He  wished  them  not  Health” 
nor  Happiness,”  but  Grace  and  Peace  ” from  God 
our  Father.  And  now  comes  the  question,  What  is 


20 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


the  use  of  this  benediction  ? How  could  grace  and 
peace  be  given  as  a blessing  to  those  who  rejected  grace, 
and  not  believing  felt  no  peace?  Let  me  try  to  illus- 
trate this.  When  the  minister  in  a representative 
capacity,  in  the  person  of  Christ,  declares  absolution  to 
a sinner,  his  absolution  is  not  lost  if  the  man  rejects  it, 
or  cannot  receive  it ; for  it  returns  to  him  again,  and 
he  has  done  what  he  could  to  show  that  in  Christ  there 
is  a full  absolution  for  the  sinner,  if  he  will  take  it. 
Remember  what  Christ  said  to  the  seventy : ‘‘  When 
ye  enter  into  an  house,  say.  Peace  be  to  this  house  ; 
and  if  the  Son  of  Peace  be  there,  your  peace  shall  rest 
upon  it,  if  not,  it  shall  return  to  you  again.” 

The  validity  of  St.  Paul’s  blessing  depended  on  its 
reception  by  the  hearts  to  whom  it  was  addressed.  If 
they  received  it,  they  became  in  fact  what  they  had 
been  by  right  all  along,  sons  of  God  : they  set  to 
their  seal  that  God  was  true.” 

Grace  and  peace  from  God  our  Father  and  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.”  For  the  special  revelation  of 
Jesus  Christ  is,  that  God  is  our  Father,  and  when  we 
believe  that,  not  merely  with  our  intellects,  but  with 
our  hearts,  and  evidence  in  our  lives  that  we  believe  it, 
and  that  this  relationship  is  the  spring  of  our  motives 
and  actions,  then  will  flow  in  the  Peace  which  passeth 
all  understanding,  and  we  are  blessed  indeed  with  the 
blessing  of  God. 


TO  THE  COKINTHIANS. 


21 


LECTURE  III. 


June  15,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  i.  4 - 13.  — I thank  my  God  always  on  your  behalf,  for 
the  Grace  of  God  which  is  given  you  by  Jesus  Christ;  — That  in  every 
thing  ye  are  enriched  by  him,  in  all  utterance,  and  in  all  knowledge; 
— Even  as  the  testimony  of  Christ  was  confirmed  in  you:  — So  that 
ye  come  behind  in  no  gift;  waiting  for  the  coming  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ:  — Who  shall  also  confirm  you  unto  the  end,  that  ye  may  be 
blameless  in  the  day  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  — God  is  faithful,  by 
whom  ye  were  called  unto  the  fellowship  of  his  Son  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord.  — Now  I beseech  you,  brethren,  by  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  that  ye  all  speak  the  same  thing,  and  that  there  be  no  divis- 
ions among  you;  but  that  ye  be  perfectly  joined  together  in  the  same 
mind  and  in  the  same  judgment.  — For  it  hath  been  declared  unto 
me  of  you,  my  brethren,  by  them  which  are  of  the  house  of  Chloe, 
that  there  are  contentions  among  you.  — Now  this  I say,  that  every 
one  of  you  saith,  I am  of  Paul;  and  I of  Apollos;  and  I of  Cephas; 
and  I of  Christ.” 

Our  work  to-day  will  be  from  the  commencement  of 
the  fourth  to  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  verses,  in  which 
we  find  two  points  ; first,  the  Apostolic  congratulations 
from  the  fourth  to  the  tenth  verse  ; and,  after  that,  the 
Apostolic  warning  and  rebuke,  from  the  tenth  to  the 
end.  First,  then,  the  Apostolic  congratulation  — “I 
thank  my  God  always  on  your  behalf,”  &c.  Let  us 
remark  here  how,  in  the  heart  of  St.  Paul,  the  unself- 
ishness of  Christianity  had  turned  this  world  into  a 
perpetual  feast.  He  had  almost  none  of  the  personal 
enjoyments  of  existence.  If  we  want  to  know  what  his 
life  was,  we  have  only  to  turn  to  the  eleventh  chapter 
of  the  second  Epistle  : Of  the  Jews  five  times  received 
I forty  stripes  save  one,  thrice  was  I beaten  with  rods, 
once  was  I stoned,”  &c.  That  was  his  daily  outward 
life  ; yet  we  shall  greatly  mistake  the  life  of  that  glorious 
Apostle  if  we  suppose  it  to  have  been  an  unhappy  one. 
It  was  filled  with  blessedness  ; the  blessedness  which 
arises  from  that  high  Christian  faculty  through  which  a 


22 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


man  is  able  to  enjoy  the  blessings  of  others  as  tliough 
they  were  his  own.  Tlius,  the  Apostle,  in  all  his 
weariness  and  persecutions,  was,  nevertheless,  always 
rejoicing  with  his  Churches  ; and  especially  he  rejoiced 
over  the  gifts  and  graces  given  to  the  Corinthians,  of 
which  he  here  enumerates  three  : first.  Utterance,  then 
Knowledge,  and  then  the  grace  of  that  peculiar  attitude 
of  Expectation  with  which  they  w^ere  looking  for  the 
coming  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  lie  speaks  of  the 
gift  of  Utterance,  and  we  shall  understand  his  reason 
for  calling  it  a gift  rather  than  a grace,  when  we  re- 
member that,  in  his  conception.  Charity  was  far  above 
Knowledge.  To  him  a blessing  was  nothing,  unless  it 
could  be  imparted  to  others.  Knowing  a truth  is  one 
thing ; being  able  to  express  it,  is  quite  another  thing  : 
and  then  again,  to  be  able  to  express  a truth  is  one 
thing,  but  to  dare  to  do  it  is  another  thing  altogether. 
The  Apostle  unites  both  of  these  in  the  expression,  ut- 
terance : ” it  is,  at  the  same  time,  an  intellectual  gift  and 
a spiritual  grace.  St.  Paul  also  thanks  God  for  their 
Knowledge  ; for  utterance  without  knowledge  is  worth- 
less. He  did  not  value  these  things  merely  for  them- 
selves, but  only  as  they  were  means  to  an  end  — 
channels  for  conveying  truth  to  others. 

The  last  gift  for  which  the  Apostle  thanks  God  in  this 
place  Avas  their  attitude  of  Expectation  — they  were 
waiting  for  the  coming  of  the  Lord  — he  says,  So  that 
ye  come  behind  in  no  gift,  waiting  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  ; ” as  though  that  were  the  highest  gift  of  all ; as 
if  that  attitude  of  expectation  were  the  highest  posture 
that  can  be  attained  here  by  the  Christian.  It  implies 
a patient,  humble  spirit,  one  that  is  Avaiting  for,  one  that 
is  looking  forward  to,  something  higher  and  better.  The 
Apostle  seems  by  this  to  tell  us  that  the  highest  spirit 
is  shown  rather  in  calm  expectation,  than  in  disputing 
how  that  Kingdom  shall  come,  in  believing  that  it  must 
come,  and  silently  waiting  for  God’s  OAvn  time  for  the 
revealing.  St.  Paul’s  congratulation  contains  a ground 
of  hope  lor  the  continuance  of  those  blessings  — God 
shall  confirm  you  to  the  end  ; ” and  again,  God  is 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


23 


faithful.”  He  relies  not  on  any  stability  of  human  good- 
ness, he  knows  that  he  cannot  trust  to  their  inherent 
firmness  or  fidelity ; his  ground  of  confidence  for  the 
future  is  rather  in  the  character  of  God.  This  is  our 
only  stay,  our  only  hope,  the  unchanging  faithfulness  of 
God.  True  it  is,  that  doctrine  may  be  abused,  we  may 
rest  upon  it  too  much,  and  so  become  indifferent  and 
supine ; but,  nevertheless,  it  is  a most  precious  truth, 
and  without  some  conviction  of  this,  I cannot  under- 
stand how  any  man  dares  go  forth  to  his  work  in  the 
morning,  or  at  evening  lay  his  head  on  his  pillow  to 
sleep. 

We  now  pass  on,  secondly,  to  consider  the  Apostle’s 
warning  and  reproof  — Parties  had  risen  in  Corinth : 
let  us  endeavor  briefly  to  understand  what  these  parties 
were.  You  cannot  have  read  the  Epistles  without  per- 
ceiving that  the  Apostles  taught  very  differently  — not 
a different  gospel,  but  each  one  a different  side  of  the 
gospel.  Contrast  the  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  \vith  those  of 
St.  Peter  or  St.  John.  These  were  not  contrarieties, 
but  varieties,  and  so  together  they  made  up  the  unity 
of  the  Church  of  Christ.  The  first  party  in  Corinth  of 
which  we  shall  speak  was  that  one  which  called  itself 
by  the  name  of  Paul  ; and  the  truths  which  they  would 
chiefly  proclaim  would  doubtless  be  those  of  Liberty  and 
Universality.  Moreover,  St.  Paul  was  not  ordained 
like  other  teachers,  but  was  called  suddenly  by  special 
revelation  of  the  Lord.  He  frequently  refers  to  this, 
and  declares  that  he  was  taught  — not  of  man,  but  of 
God  only.  Now,  the  party  calling  itself  by  the  name 
of  Paul  would  doubtless  exaggerate  this,  and  teach,  in- 
stead of  liberty,  licentiousness  ; and  so  with  the  other 
peculiarities  of  his  teaching.  There  was  also  a party 
naming  itself  after  Apollos ; he  had  been  educated  at 
Alexandria,  the  university  of  the  world,  and  we  are  told 
that  he  was  mighty  in  the  Scriptures,  and  remarkable 
for  eloquence.  The  difference  between  Apollos  and  St. 
Paul  seems  to  be  not  so  much  a difference  of  views  as 
in  the  mode  of  stating  those  views  : the  eloquence  of  St. 
Paul  was  rough  and  burning ; it  stirred  men’s  hearte, 


24 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


kindling  in  them  the  living  fire  of  tnith  : that  of  A poll  os 
was  more  refined  and  polished.  Tliere  was  also  the 
party  called  by  the  name  of  Peter.  Christianity  in  his 
heart  had  been  regularly  and  slowly  develoj)ed  ; he  had 
known  Jesus  first  as  the  Son  of  Man  ; and  afterwards 
as  the  Son  of  God.  It  was  lon^  before  he  realized  God’s 

o 

purpose  of  love  to  the  Gentiles  — in  his  conception  the 
Messiah  was  to  be  chiefly  King  for  the  Jews ; therefore 
all  the  Jewish  converts,  who  still  clung  to  very  much 
that  was  Jewish,  preferred  to  follow  St.  Peter.  Lastly, 
there  was  the  party  calling  itself  by  the  name  of  Christ 
Himself.  History  does  not  inform  us  what  were  the 
special  views  of  this  party ; but  it  is  not  difficult  to 
imagine  that  they  set  themselves  up  as  superior  to  all 
others.  Doubtless,  they  prided  themselves  on  their 
spirituality  and  inward  light,  and  looked  down  with  con- 
tempt on  those  who  professed  to  follow  the  opinion  of 
any  teacher.  Perhaps  they  ignored  the  apostolic  teach- 
ing altogether,  and  proclaimed  the  doctrines  of  direct 
communion  with  God  without  the  aid  of  ministry  or 
ordinances  ; and  these,  as  well  as  the  others,  the  Apostle 
rebuked.  The  guilt  of  these  partizans  did  not  lie  in 
holding  views  differing  from  each  other;  it  was  not  so 
much  in  saying  this  is  the  truth,”  as  it  was  in  saying 

this  is  not  the  truth  ; ” the  guilt  of  schism  is  when 
each  party,  instead  of  expressing  fully  his  own  truth, 
attacks  others,  and  denies  that  the  others  are  in  the 
Truth  at  all. 

Avoid,  I pray  you,  the  accursed  spirit  of  sectarianism  : 
suffer  not  yourselves  to  be  called  by  any  party  names  ; 
One  is  your  Master,  even  Christ,  and  all  ye  are  brethren. 
Let  each  man  strive  to  work  out,  bravely  and  honestly, 
the  truth  which  God  has  given  to  him  ; and  when  men 
oppose  us  and  malign  us,  let  us  still,  with  a love  which 
hopeth  all  things,  strive  rather  to  find  good  in  them  — 
truths  special  to  them  — but  which  as  yet  they  — per- 
il aps  unconsciously  — falsely  represent. 


TO  THE  CORI]STHIANS. 


25 


LECTURE  IV. 

June  22,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  i.  13-22.  — “Is  Christ  dmded  ? was  Paul  crucified 
for  you  ? or  were  ye  baptized  in  the  name  of  Paul  ? — I thank  God 
that.  I baptized  none  of  you,  but  Crispus  and  Gains;  — Lest  any 
should  say  that  I had  baptized  in  my  own  name.  — And  I baptized 
also  the  household  of  Stephanas;  besides,  I know  not  whether  I 
baptized  any  other.  — For  Christ  sent  me  not  to  baptize,  but  to 
preach  the  Gospel;  not  with  wisdom  of  words,  lest  the  Cross  of 
Christ  should  be  made  of  none  elfect.  — For  the  preaching  of  the 
cross  is  to  them  that  perish  foolishness;  but  unto  us  which  are 
saved  it  is  the  power  of  God.  — For  it  is  written,  I will  destroy 
the  wisdom  of  the  wise,  and  will  bring  to  nothing  the  understand- 
ing of  the  prudent.  — Where  is  the  wise  ? where  is  the  scribe  ? where 
is  the  disputer  of  this  world  ? — hath  not  God  made  foolish  the 
wisdom  of  this  world  ? — For  after  that  in  the  wisdom  of  God  the 
world  by  wisdom  knew  not  God,  it  pleased  God  by  the  foolishness  of 
preaching  to  save  them  that  believe.  — For  the  Jews  require  a sign, 
and  the  Greeks  seek  after  wisdom.” 

Last  Sunday  we  endeavored  to  arrive  at  a right 
understanding  respecting  the  different  parties  in  the 
Church  of  Corinth  : let  us  now  pass  on  to  consider  the 
argument  by  which  St.  Paul  met  these  sectarians.  It 
was  an  appeal  to  Baptism,  and  to  understand  the  force 
of  that  appeal,  we  must  endeavor  to  understand  what 
Christian  Baptism  is.  It  contains  two  things  : something 
on  the  part  of  God,  and  something  on  the  part  of  man. 
On  God’s  part  it  is  an  authoritative  revelation  of  His 
Paternity  : on  man’s  part  it  is  an  acceptance  of  God’s 
covenant.  Now  there  is  a remarkable  passage  in  which 
we  find  St.  Paul  expressing  the  meaning  of  Baptism 
as  symbolizing  submission,  discipleship  to  any  particular 
teacher  : Moreover,  brethren,  I would  not  that  ye 
should  be  ignorant  how  that  all  our  fathers  were  bap- 
tized unto  Moses  in  the  cloud  and  in  the  sea.”  When 
the  Israelites  passed  through  the  Red  Sea  they  cut 
8 


26 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


themselves  off  for  ever  from  Egypt,  so  that,  figuratively 
speaking,  the  Apostle  teaches  that  in  that  immersion 
they  were  baptized  unto  Moses,  for  thereby  they  de- 
clared themselves  his  followers,  and  left  all  to  go  with 
him.  And  so,  just  as  tlie  soldier  who  receives  the 
bounty  money  is  thereby  pledged  to  serve  his  sovereign, 
so  he  who  has  passed  through  the  Baptismal  waters,  is 
pledged  to  fight  under  the  lledeemer’s  banner  against 
sin,  the  world,  and  the  devil.  And  now  the  argument 
of  St.  Paul  becomes  plain.  He  argues  thus : To  whom 
were  ye  then  baptized  ? To  whom  did  you  pledge 
yourselves  in  discipleship  ? If  to  Christ,  why  do  ye 
name  yourselves  by  the  name  of  Paul  ? If  all  were 
baptized  into  that  One  Name,  how  is  it  that  a few  only 
have  adopted  it  as  their  own  ? 

Upon  this  we  make  two  remarks  ; first,  the  value 
and  blessedness  of  the  Sacraments.  It  will  be  asked. 
To  what  purpose  are  the  Sacraments  of  the  Church  ? 
if  they  work  no  miracle,  of  what  avail  are  they  ? Our 
reply  is.  Much  every  way  ; among  others,  that  they  are 
authoritative  signs  and  symbols.  Now  there  is  very 
much  contained  in  the  idea  of  a recognized  authorita- 
tive symbol ; for  instance,  in  some  parts  of  the  country 
it  is  the  custom  to  give  and  receive  a ring,  in  token  of 
betrothal ; but  that  is  very  different  from  the  marriage- 
ring, it  being  not  authoritative,  and  being  without  the 
sanction  of  the  Church. 

It  would  have  been  perfectly  possible  for  man  to  have 
invented  for  himself  another  symbol  of  the  truth  con- 
veyed in  Baptism,  but  then  it  would  not  have  been 
authoritative,  and  consequently  it  would  have  been 
weak  and  useless.  Now,  there  is  another  thing,  and 
that  is,  that  these  Sacraments  are  the  epitomes  of  Chris- 
tian Truth.  This  is  the  way  in  which  the  Apostle 
frequently  makes  use  of  the  Sacraments.  From  the 
l^^pistle  to  the  Romans  we  find  that  Antinomianism  had 
cre|)t  into  the  (Miurch,  and  that  there  were  some  who 
said,  that  if  only  they  believed,  it  did  not  matter  that 
they  sinned.  How  does  St.  Paid  meet  this?  By  an 
appeal  to  ]hq)tism  ? He  says,  God  foihid,  how  shall 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


2T 


we,  who  are  dead  to  sin,  live  any  longer  therein  ? Know 
ye  not  that  so  many  of  us  as  were  baptized  into  Jesus 
Christ  were  baptized  into  His  death  ? ” Buried  with 
Him  by  baptism,”  — in  the  very  form  of  that  Sacra- 
ment there  was  a protest  against  this  Antinomianism. 
And  again,  in  reference  to  the  Lord’s  Supper,  in  the 
Church  of  Corinth  abuses  had  crept  in ; that  holy 
Communion  had  become  a feast  of  gluttony  and  a sig- 
nal of  division.  This  error  he  endeavors  to  correct  by 
reference  to  the  institution  of  the  Supper  itself,  The 
bread  which  we  break,  is  it  not  the  Communion  of  the 
Body  of  Christ  ?”  The  single  loaf,  broken  into  many 
fragments,  contains  within  it  a truth  symbolical,  that 
the  Church  of  Christ  is  one.  Here,  in  the  text,  St. 
Paul  makes  the  same  appeal : he  appeals  to  Baptism 
against  sectarianism,  and  so  long  as  we  retain  it,  it  is 
an  everlasting  protest  against  every  one  who  breaks 
the  unity  of  the  Church.  The  other  remark  we  have 
to  make  bears  on  the  peculiar  meaning  of  the  Sacra- 
ment. We  are  all  aware  that  there  are  those  in  the 
Church  of  Christ,  whose  personal  holiness  and  purity 
are  unquestionable,  who  yet  believe  and  teach  that  all 
children  are  born  into  the  world  children  of  the  devil, 
and  there  are  those  who  agree  in  this  belief,  though 
differing  as  to  the  remedy  ; who  hold  that  the  special 
and  only  instrument  for  their  conversion  into  God’s 
children  is  Baptism  ; and  they  believe  that  there  is 
given  to  the  ministers  of  the  Church  the  power  of  con- 
veying in  that  Sacrament  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  effects 
this  wondrous  change.  I know  not  that  I have  mis- 
represented this  view  : I do  not  think  I have,  yet  I say 
at  least,  that  if  a minister  really  believes  he  has  this 
power,  then  it  is  only  with  fear  and  trembling  that  he 
should  approach  the  font  in  which  he  is  about  to  baptize 
a child.  But,  let  us  try  this  view  by  the  passage  before 
us  : if  this  view  be  true,  then  the  Apostle,  in  saying 
that  he  thanked  God  he  had  not  baptized,  thanked  God 
that  he  had  not  regenerated  any  : he  rejoices  that  he 
had  not  conveyed  the  Spirit  of  God  to  any  one  but 
Crispus  and  Gains,  and  the  household  of  Stephanas. 


28 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTJ.ES 


And  all  this  merely,  lest  he  should  perchance  lie  under 
the  slander  of  having  made  to  himself  a party!  If  we 
reject  this  hypothesis  as  impossible,  then  it  is  plain  that 
the  view  we  have  alluded  to  rests  on  no  scriptural  basis. 
We  pass  on,  lastly,  to  consider  the  compromise  which 
Paul  refused  to  make  : he  would  make  none,  either 
with  the  Jews  in  their  craving  after  Signs,  or  with  the 
Greeks  in  their  lonmn^  after  Wisdom.  For  fifteen 
hundred  years  forms  and  signs  had  been  the  craving  of 
the  Jews.  St.  Peter  even  had  leanings  in  the  same 
direction.  The  truth  seems  to  be,  that  wherever  there 
is  life,  there  will  be  a form  ; but  wherever  a form  is,  it 
does  not  follow  that  there  must  be  life  ; St.  Paul  stood 
firm  — Not  Signs,  but  Christ.  Neither  would  he  make 
any  compromise  with  the  craving  after  an  intellectual 
religion.  There  was  a diametrical  contrast  between 
the  Jewish  and  the  Grecian  spirit:  one  seemed  all 
body,  and  the  other  all  mind.  The  wisdom  of  which 
St.  Paul  speaks,  appears  to  have  been  of  two  kinds  — 
speculative  philosophy,  and  wisdom  of  words  — elo- 
quence. Men  bow  before  talent,  even  if  unassociated 
with  goodness,  but  between  these  two  we  must  make 
an  everlasting  distinction.  When  once  the  idolatry  of 
talent  enters,  then  farewell  to  spirituality ; when  men 
ask  their  teachers,  not  for  that  which  will  make  them 
more  humble  and  God-like,  but  for  the  excitement  of 
an  intellectual  banquet,  then  farewell  to  Christian  pro- 
gress. Here  also  St.  Paul  again  stood  firm  — Not 
Wisdom,  but  Christ  crucified.  St.  Paul  might  have 
complied  with  these  requirements  of  his  converts,  and 
then  he  would  have  gained  admiration,  and  love  — he 
would  have  been  the  leader  of  a party,  but  then  he 
would  have  been  false  to  his  Master  — he  would  luave 
been  preferring  self  to  Christ. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


29 


LECTURE  V. 

June  29,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  i.  23.  — ‘‘Bat  we  preach  Christ  crucified,  unto  the 
Jews  a stumbling-block,  and  unto  the  Greeks  foolishness. 


In  tlie  course  of  our  exposition  of  this  Epistle,  we 
have  learnt  the  original  constitution  of  Corinthian  society, 
and  have  ascertained  the  state  of  the  religious  parties  in 
that  city  at  the  time  St.  Paul  wrote.  We  have  seen 
that  the  Apostle  Paul  refused  to  make  a compromise 
with  either  of  these  parties  ; it  remains  for  us  now  to 
consider  first  the  subject  which  he  resolved  to  dwell 
upon,  and  then  the  results  of  that  teaching  on  the  dif- 
ferent classes  of  his  hearers.  His  subject  was  — - Christ 
crucified.”  The  expression,  preaching  Christ,”  is 
very  much  misunderstood  by  many  persons.  It  is, 
therefore,  incumbent  on  us  to  endeavor  calmly  to  un- 
derstand what  the  Apostle  meant  by  this.  We  say, 
then,  that  to  preach  Christ  is  to  preach  Christianity, 
that  is,  the  Doctrines  which  He  taught.  In  Acts,  xv. 
21,  we  read,  Moses  of  old  time  hath  in  every  city 
them  that  preach  him.”  The  reading  of  the  Pentateuch 
was  the  preaching  of  Moses.  Preaching  Christ  is  setting 
forth  His  Doctrines  in  contra-distinction  to  those  of  the 
World.  The  World  says — Resent  an  injury;  Christ 
says  — Forgive  your  enemies.  If,  therefore,  we  preach 
Forgiveness,  are  we  not  thereby  preaching  Christ,  even 
though  no  distinct  mention  may  be  made  of  his  Divinity 
or  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Atonement  ? In  the  Sermon 
on  the  Mount  there  is  contained  no  reference  to  any  one 
special  doctrine  of  Christianity,  as  we  should  call  it ; 
nor  in  the  Epistle  of  St.  James  is  there  found  one  word 
respecting  the  doctrine  of  the  Atonement ; but  if  we 
take  this  Sermon  or  this  Epistle,  and  simply  work  out 
the  truths  therein  contained  — tell  us,  are  we  not  there- 


30 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


by  preaching  Christ?  To  preach  Goodness,  Mercy, 
Truth,  not  for  the  bribe  of  heaven  or  from  the  fear  of 
hell,  but  in  the  Name  of  God  the  Father,  is  to  preach 
Christ. 

Once  more,  this  expression  implies  preaching  Truth 
in  connection  with  a Person  : it  is  not  merely  Purity, 
but  the  Pure  One  ; not  merely  Goodness,  but  the  Good 
One  that  we  worship.  Let  us  observe  the  twofold  ad- 
vantage of  this  mode  of  preaching  : first,  because  it 
makes  religion  practical.  Tlie  Greek  teachers  were 
also  teaching  Purity,  Goodness,  Truth ; they  were 
striving  to  lead  men’s  minds  to  the  First  Good,  the 
First  Fair.  The  Jewish  Rabbis  were  also  endeavoring 
to  do  the  same,  but  it  is  only  in  Christ  that  it  becomes 
possible  to  do  this  effectually.  The  second  advantage 
in  preaching  Christianity  in  connection  with  a Person 
is,  that  it  gives  us  something  to  adore,  for  we  can  adore 
a person^  but  we  cannot  adore  principles.  There  is  im- 
plied in  this  expression,  preaching  Christ  crucified,” 
the  Divine  nature  of  Humility.  Paul  would  not  preach 
Christ  as  a conqueror,  although  by  that  he  might  please 
the  Jews,  or  yet  as  a philosopher,  in  order  that  he  might 
satisfy  the  Greeks  ; he  would  only  preach  Him  as  the 
humble,  crucified  Man  of  Nazareth. 

We  are,  in  the  second  place,  to  consider  the  results 
of  this  teaching  on  the  several  classes  of  his  hearers.  To 
the  Jew  it  was  a stumbling-block,  something  over  which 
he  could  not  pass  ; the  Jew  could  not  receive  the  Gos- 
pel, unless  accompanied  by  signs  and  miracles  to  prove 
that  it  was  from  God.  To  the  Greeks  it  was  foolish- 
ness, for  the  Apostle  spoke  to  them  as  an  uneducated, 
uncultivated  man  ; and  they  missed  the  sophistry,  the 
logic,  and  the  brilliant  eloquence  of  their  professional 
orators.  Neither  could  they  see  what  advantage  his 
teacliing  could  be  to  them,  for  it  would  not  show  them 
how  to  form  a statue,  build  a temple,  or  make  a fortune, 
which  things  they  looked  upon  as  the  chief  glories  of 
life.  Jkit  there  was  another  class  on  whom  his  words 
made  a very  d life  rent  impression.  They  are  those  whom 
the  A])ostle  desci’ibes  as  the  Called.”  To  them  Christ 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


31 


was  the  Power  and  the  Wisdom  of  God.  He  does  not 
mean  to  assert  here  the  doctrine  of  Election  or  Pre- 
destination ; on  the  contrary,  he  says  that  this  calling 
was  in  respect  of  inward  fitness,  and  not  of  outward 
advantages.  God  prepares  the  heart  of  man  for  the  re- 
ception of  the  Gospel  — that  is  God’s  blessed  plan  of 
election. 


32 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  VI. 

- November  2,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  iii.  1 “10.  — “ And  I,  brethren,  could  not  speak  unto 
you  as  unto  spiritual,  but  as  unto  carnal,  even  as  unto  babes  in 
Christ.  — I have  fed  you  with  milk,  and  not  with  meat:  for  hitherto 
ye  were  not  able  to  bear  it,  neither  yet  now  are  ye  able.  — For  ye  are 
yet  carnal:  for  whereas  there  is  among  you  envying,  and  strife,  and 
divisions,  are  ye  not  carnal,  and  walk  as  men  — For  while  one  saith, 
I am  of  Paul;  and  another,  I am  of  Apollos;  are  ye  not  carnal?  — 
Who  then  is  Paul,  and  who  is  Apollos,  but  ministers  by  whom  ye  be- 
lieved, even  as  the  Lord  gave  to  every  man  ? — I have  planted, 
Apollos  watered;  but  God  gave  the  increase.  — So  then  neither  is  he 
that  planteth  anything,  neither  he  that  watereth ; but  God  that  giveth 
the  increase.  — Now  he  that  planteth  and  he  that  watereth  are  one; 
and  every  man  shall  receive  his  own  reward  according  to  his  own 
labor.  — For  we  are  laborers  together  with  God:  ye  are  God’s  hus- 
bandry, ye  are  God’s  building.  — According  to  the  grace  of  God  which 
is  given  unto  me,  as  a wise  master-builder,  I have  laid  the  foundation, 
and  another  buildeth  thereon.  But  let  every  man  take  heed  how  he 
buildeth  thereupon.  ’ ’ 

The  two  former  chapters  of  this  Epistle  refer  to  St. 
Paul’s  ministry  while  at  Corinth,  where  there  existed 
a church  made  up  of  very  peculiar  elements.  The  first 
of  these  was  Roman,  and  composed  of  freedmen,  through 
whose  influence  society  became  democratic.  The  sec- 
ond element  was  Greek,  refined,  intellectual,  inquisitive, 
and  commercial,  and  this  rendered  the  whole  body  rest- 
less, and  apt  to  divide  itself  into  parties.  In  addition  to 
these  was  the  Jewish  element,  which  at  this  time  had 
degenerated  into  little  more  than  a religion  of  the  senses. 
From  all  this  there  arose,  first,  a craving  for  an  intellec- 
tual religion  — appealing  merely  to  taste  and  philoso- 
phical perceptions.  But  St.  Paul  refused  to  preach  to 
them  elo(piently  or  philosophically,  ‘‘  lest  the  Cross  of 
Christ  should  be  made  of  none  effect.”  St.  Paul  knew 
that  the  liuman  lieart  often  rests  in  eloquent  expression 
of  religions  sentiment,  instead  of  carrying  it  on  into  re- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


33 


ligious  action.  For  strong  feelings  often  evaporate  in 
words.  Strong  expressions  about  self-sacrifice  or  self- 
denial,  about  a life  sustained  high  above  the  world, 
often  satisfy  the  heart  and  prevent  it  from  rising  to 
the  grace  talked  about ; whereas  Christianity  is  not  a 
Creed  but  a Life,  and  men  who  listen  to  a preacher 
only  to  find  an  intellectual  amusement,  or  pictures  of 
an  ideal  existence,  are  not  thereby  advanced  one  step 
nearer  to  the  high  life  of  a Christian. 

Secondly.  From  the  Jewish  element  there  arose  a 
craving  for  a religion  of  signs ; and  St.  Paul  refused 
to  teach  by  signs.  He  would  not  base  Christianity 
upon  miracles,  or  external  proofs ; because,  truth  is  its 
own  evidence,  and  the  soul  alone  must  be  the  judge 
whether  a truth  is  from  God  or  not.  Miracles  address 
the  senses,  and  the  appetites  of  hunger  and  thirst ; and 
it  were  preposterous  to  say  that  the  eye,  the  ear,  or  the 
touch  can  determine  accurately  of  Divine  truth  while 
the  soul  cannot ; that  the  lower  part  of  our  nature  is 
an  unerring  judge,  while  the  soul  alone  is  not  infallible 
in  its  decisions.  For  the  natural  man  (understandeth) 
receiveth  not  the  things  of  the  Spirit  of  God : for  they 
are  foolishness  unto  him.” 

Howbeit  we  speak  wisdom  among  them  that  are 
perfect,  yet  not  the  wisdom  of  this  world,  but  the  wis- 
dom of  God,  which  is  hidden  in  a mystery.” 

A third  consequence  of  this  peculiar  constitution  of 
Corinthian  society  was,  its  Party  spirit.  This  arose 
out  of  its  democratic  character.  Faction  does  not  rend 
a society  in  which  classes  are  indisputably  divided  be- 
yond appeal,  as  is  the  case  in  Hindustan.  Where 
superiority  is  unquestioned  between  class  and  class, 
rivalry  will  exist  only  between  individuals.  But  where 
all  are  by  social  position  equal,  then  there  wdll  be  a strug- 
gle for  superiority ; for  in  God’s  world  there  is  not  one 
monotony  of  plains  without  hills,  nor  a human  society 
on  one  dead  level  of  equality.  There  is  an  above ^ and 
there  is  a below.  There  are  angels,  principalities,  pow- 
ers, there  ; and  here,  orders,  degrees,  and  ranks.  And 
the  difficulty  in  social  adjudicature  is,  to  determine  who 


34 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ERISTI.ES 


ouglit  to  be  the  leaders,  and  wlio  are  to  be  the  led  ; to 
abolish  false  aristocracies,  and  to  establish  the  true. 
Now,  to  say  that  this  is  what  men  aim  at,  is  to  say  that 
dispute,  faction,  party  spirit,  animosity  must  exist  till 
that  real  order  is  established  which  is  called  the  King- 
dom of  God  on  earth  ; in  which  each  person  is  in  his 
right  place,  and  they  only  rule  who  are  fit  to  rule. 
To-day,  therefore,  our  subject  will  relate  to  this  third 
consequence ; and  I shall  speak  of  St.  Paul's  spiritual 
treatment  of  the  Corinthian  Church,  in  a state  of 
faction. 

I.  His  economic  management  of  Truth. 

II.  His  depreciation  of  the  Human  in  the  march  of 
progress,  by  his  manifestation  of  God  in  it. 

I.  His  economic  management  of  Truth. 

I use  this  word,  though  it  may  seem  pedantic,  be- 
cause I find  no  other  to  answer  my  purpose  so  well ; it 
is  borrowed  from  the  times  of  the  early  Christian 
Church : Economic,”  when  used  in  reference  to  the 

management  of  a household,  means  a frugal  use  of 
provision  in  opposition  to  extravagant  expenditure.  An 
economist  apportions  to  each  department  the  sum  neces- 
sary, and  no  more. 

And  in  the  spiritual  dispensation  of  Truth,  economy 
means  that  prudent  distribution  which  does  not  squan- 
der it  uselessly  away,  when  it  can  do  no  good,  but 
which  apportions  to  each  age,  and  to  each  capacity,  the 
amount  it  can  turn  to  good  account.  It  implies  a pru- 
dent, wise  reserve.  Now  the  principle  of  this  we  find 
stated  in  the  second  verse,  I have  fed  you  with  milk, 
and  not  with  meat.”  And,  although  in  its  application 
some  errors  might  be  committed  by  withholding  truths 
which  should  be  granted,  and  by  failing  to  distribute 
them  at  the  required  time,  still  the  principle  is  a simple 
and  a true  one.  For  different  ages,  different  kinds  of 
food.  For  childhood,  or  babes  in  Christ,”  milk.  For 
them  that  are  of  full  age,  or  who  have  the  power  of  dis- 
cerning: both  m)od  nnd  evil,  strono;  meat.”  But  reverse 

O O 7 0 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


35 


this,,  and  the  child  becomes  sick  and  fevered.  And  the 
reason  of  this  is,  that  what  is  strength  to  the  man  is 
injury  to  the  child  — it  cannot  bear  it. 

The  doctrine  which  the  Apostle  calls  strong  meat,’’ 
if  taught  at  first,  would  deter  from  further  discipleship ; 
and  Christ  expresses  the  same  thing.  No  man  put- 
teth  a piece  of  new  cloth  unto  an  old  garment,  for  the 
rent  is  made  worse.  Neither  do  men  put  new  wine 
into  old  bottles,  else  the  bottles  break,  and  the  wine 
runneth  out.”  Now  this,  remember,  was  said  imme- 
diately after  the  disciples  of  John  had  asked,  why  Jesus 
had  not  taught  the  same  severe  life  (the  type  of  which 
was  fasting)  which  John  had.  And  so,  too,  Christ  did 
not  preach  the  Cross  to  His  disciples  at  first.  The  first 
time  He  did  preach  it,  it  shocked  them.  For  it  was 
not  until  after  Peter’s  memorable  acknowledgment  of 
Him  in  these  words,  Thou  art  the  Christ,”  that  He 
revealed  to  them  His  coming  death,  which,  even 
then,  resulted  in  a kind  of  revolt  against  Him,  drawing 
from  Peter  the  exclamation,  This  be  far  from  thee. 
Lord.” 

Such  a case  of  defection  actually  did  occur  in  the 
behavior  of  the  young  Ruler,  who  forced,  as  it  were, 
from  Christ  a different  method  of  procedure.  At  first, 
Jesus  would  have  given  him  mere  moral  duty.  Thou 
knowest  the  Commandments,  Do  not  commit  adultery, 
do  not  kill.”  But  not  satisfied  with  this,  he  asked  for 
Perfection.  What  lack  I yet?”  And  then  there 
was  nothing  left  but  to  say  — If  thou  wilt  be  perfect, 
go  and  sell  that  thou  hast  and  give  to  the  poor,  and 
come  and  follow  Me.”  For  observe,  strong  meat  ” 
does  not  mean  high  doctrine  such  as  Election,  Regen- 
eration, Justification  by  Faith,  but  Perfection : ” 
strong  demands  on  Self,  a severe,  noble  Life.  St.  Paul 
taught  the  Corinthians  all  the  Doctrine  he  had  to  teach, 
but  not  all  the  conceptions  of  the  Blessed  Life  which 
he  knew  of.  He  showed  them  that  leaving  the  prin- 
ciples of  doctrine,  they  were  to  keep  themselves  in  the 
Love  of  Christ,  and  be  strengthened  more  and  more 
with  His'  Spirit  in  the  inner  man,  growing  up  unto 
Him  in  all  things.  But  all  this  by  degrees.  And  so 


36 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


of  the  weak,  we  must  be  content  to  ask  honesty  : jus- 
tice, not  generosity,  not  to  sell  all,  but  simple  moral 
teaching.  ‘‘  Thou  knowest  the  Commandments.” 

With  a child,  we  must  ask  not  sublime  forgiveness 
of  injuries : that  which  would  be  glorious  in  a man,  in 
a boy  would  be  pusillanimity ; but  you  must  content 
yourself  at  first  with  prohibiting  tyranny.  There  is  no 
greater  mistake  in  education  than  not  attending  to  this 
principle.  Do  not  ask  of  your  child  to  sacrifice  all 
enjoyment  for  the  sake  of  others,  but  let  him  learn  first, 
not  to  enjoy  at  the  expense  of  the  disadvantage  or  suf- 
fering of  another. 

Another  reason  for  not  neo-lectino;  this  is,  the  dano;er 
of  familiarizing  the  mind  with  high  spiritual  doctrines, 
and  thus  engendering  hypocrisy ; for  instance.  Self- 
sacrifice,  Self-denial,  are  large  words,  which  contain 
much  beauty,  and  are  easily  got  by  heart.  But  the 
facility  of  utterance  is  soon  taken  for  a spiritual  state, 
and  while  fluently  talking  of  these  high-sounding  words, 
and  of  man’s  or  woman’s  mission  and  influence,  it  never 
occurs  to  us  that  as  yet  we  have  not  power  to  live 
them  out. 

Let  us  avoid  such  language,  and  avoid  supposing  that 
we  have  attained  such  states.  It  is  good  to  be  tem- 
perate, but  if  temperate,  do  not  mistake  that  for  self- 
denial  nor  for  self-sacrifice.  It  is  good  to  be  honest,  to 
pay  one’s  debts  ; but  when  you  are  simply  doing  your 
duty,  do  not  talk  of  a noble  life  ; be  content  to  say, 

we  are  unprofitable  servants  — we  have  done  that 
which  was  our  duty  to  do.” 

The  danger  of  extreme  demands  made  on  hearts  un- 
prepared for  such  is  seen  in  the  case  of  Ananias. 
These  demands  were  not,  as  we  see,  made  by  the  Apos- 
tles, for  notliing  could  be  wiser  tlian  St.  Peter’s  treat- 
ment of  the  case,  representing  such  sacrifice  as  purely 
voluntary,  and  not  compelled.  While  it  remained, 
was  it  not  thine  own  ; and  after  it  was  sold,  was  it  not 
in  thine  own  power?  ” But  ])ublic  o])inion,  which  had 
made  sacrifice  faHldonahle^  demanded  it.  And  it  was 
a demand,  like  strong  meat  to  the  weak,  for  Ananias 
was  unabl(‘  to  l)(‘ar  it.’'  • 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


87 


II.  The  second  remedy  in  this  factions  state  was  to 
depreciate  the  part  played  by  man  in  the  great  work 
of  progress,  and  to  exhibit  the  part  of  God. 

Who,  then,  is  Paul,  and  who  is  Apollos,  but  min- 
isters by  whom  ye  believed?  ” Ye  are  God’s  hus- 
bandry, ye  are  God’s  building.”  In  all  periods  of  great 
social  activity,  when  society  becomes  conscious  of  itself, 
and  morbidly  observant  of  its  own  progress,  there  is  a 
tendency  to  exalt  the  instruments,  persons,  and  means 
by  which  it  progresses.  Hence,  in  turn,  kings,  states- 
men, parliaments : and  then  education,  science,  ma- 
chinery, and  the  press,  have  had  their  hero-worship. 
Here,  at  Corinth,  was  a new  phase,  minister- worship.” 
No  marvel,  in  an  age  when  the  mere  political  progress 
of  the  Race  was  felt  to  be  inferior  to  the  spiritual  sal- 
vation of  the  Individual,  and  to  the  purification  of  the 
Society,  that  ministers,  the  particular  organs  by  which 
this  was  carried  on,  should  assume  in  men’s  eyes  pecu- 
liar importance,  and  the  special  gifts  of  every  such 
minister,  Paul  or  Apollos,  be  extravagantly  lionored. 
No  marvel  either,  that  round  the  more  prominent  of 
these,  partizans  should  gather. 

St.  Paul’s  remedy  was  simply  to  point  out  God’s 
part,  Ye  are  God’s  husbandry,”  we  are  only  laborers 
— different  only  from  wheels  and  pivots,  in  that  they 
do  their  work  unconsciously,  ive  consciously.  We  exe- 
cute a plan  which  we  only  slightly  understand  — nay, 
not  at  all,  till  it  is  completed,  like  workmen  in  a tubu- 
lar bridge,  or  men  employed  in  Gobelin  tapestry,  who 
cannot  see  the  pattern  of  their  work  until  the  whole  is 
executed.  Shall  the  hodman  boast  ? Conceive  the 
laborer  saying  of  some  glorious  architecture.  Behold 
my  work ! or  some  poet,  king,  or  priest,  in  view  of 
some  progress  of  the  race.  See  what  I have  done  ! 
Who  is  Faiil^  but  a servant  of  Higher  plans  than  he 
knows?  And  thus  we  come  to  find  that 'we  are  but 
parts  in  a mighty  system,  the  breadth  of  which  we  can- 
not measure. 

And  this  is  the  true  inspired  remedy  for  all  party 
spirit,  He  that  planteth,  and  he  that  watereth,  are 
4 


38  LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 

one.”  Each  in  his  way  is  indispensable.  To  see  the 
part  played  by  each  individual  in  (jod’s  world,  which 
he  alone  can  play,  to  do  our  own  share  in  the  acting, 
and  to  feel  that  each  is  an  integral,  essential  ])ortion  of 
the  whole,  not  interfering  with  the  rest ; to  know  that 
each  church,  each  sect,  each  man,  is  co-operating  best 
in  the  work  when  he  expresses  his  own  individuality 
(as  Paul  and  Cephas,  and  John  and  Barnabas  did),  in 
truths  of  word  and  action  which  others  perhaps  cannot 
grasp,  that  is  the  only  emancipation  from  partizan- 
ship. 

Again,  observe,  St.  Paul  held  this  sectarianism,  or 
partizanship,  to  amount  virtually  to  a denial  of  their 
Christianity.  For  as  Christians  it  was  their  privilege 
to  have  direct  access  to  the  Father  through  Christ ; they 
Avere  made  independent  of  all  men  but  the  one  Medi- 
ator Christ  Jesus.  Whereas  this  boast  of  dependence 
upon  men,  instead  of  direct  communion  with  God,  Avas 
to  glory  in  a forfeiture  of  their  privileges,  and  to  return 
to  the  Judaism,  or  Heathenism,  from  which  they  had 
been  freed.  He  says,  While  one  saith  I am  of  Paul, 
and  another  I am  of  Apollos,  are  ye  not  carnal  and 
Avalk  as  men  ? ” So  that  all  sectarianism  is  slavery 
and  narrowness,  for  it  makes  us  the  followers  of  such 
and  such  a leader.  Whereas,  says  St.  Paul,  instead  of 
your  being  that  leader’s,  that  leader  is  yours ; your 
minister,  Avhom  you  are  to  use.  For  All  things  are 
yours ; ” the  Avliole  universe  is  subservient  to  your 
moral  being  and  progress.  Be  free  then,  and  use  them  : 
do  not  be  used  by  them. 

Remark,  therefore,  how  the  truest  spiritual  freedom 
and  elevation  of  soul  spring  out  of  Christian  humility. 
All  this  liberty  and  noble  superiority  to  Life  and 
Death,  all  this  independence  of  Men,  of  Paul,  or 
Apollos,  or  Cephas,  as  their  masters,  arises  from  this, 
that  ye  are  Christ’s,  and  Christ  is  God’s  ; ” that  ye, 
as  well  as  they,  are  servants  only  of  Christ,  Avho  came 
not  to  do  His  oAvn  Avill,  but  the  Will  of  Him  avIio  sent 
Him. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


39 


LECTURE  VII. 

November  9,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  iii.  11-23.  — “ For  other  foundation  can  no  man  lay 
than  that  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ.  — Now  it  any  man  build  upon 
this  foundation  gold,  silver,  precious  stones,  wood,  hay,  stubble;  — 
Every  man’s  work  shall  be  made  manifest  : for  the  day  shall  declare 
it,  because  it  shall  be  revealed  by  fire;  and  the  fire  shall  try  every 
man’s  work  of  what  sort  it  is.  — If  any  man’s  work  abide  which  he 
hath  built  thereupon,  he  shall  receive  a reward.  — If  any  man’s  work 
shall  be  burned,  he  shall  sufter  loss  : but  he  himself  shall  be  saved; 
yet  so  as  by  fire.  — Know  ye  not  that  ye  are  the  temple  of  God,  and 
that  the  Spirit  of  God  dwelleth  in  you  ? — If  any  man  defile  the  tem- 
ple of  God,  him  shall  God  destroy;  for  the  temple  of  God  is  holy, 
which  temple  ye  are.  — Let  no  man  deceive  himself.  If  any  man 
among  you  seemeth  to  be  wise  in  this  world,  let  him  become  a fool, 
that  he  may  be  wise.  — For  the  wisdom  of  this  world  is  foolishness 
with  God.  For  it  is  written.  He  taketh  the  wise  in  their  own  ci  afti- 
ness.  — And  again,  The  Lord  knoweth  the  thoughts  of  the  wise,  that 
they  are  vain.  — Therefore  let  no  man  glory  in  men.  For  all  things 
are  yours;  — Whether  Paul,  or  Apollos,  or  Cephas,  or  the  world,  or 
life,  or  death,  or  things  present,  or  things  to  come;  all  are  yours;  — 
And  ye  are  Christ’s;  and  Christ  is  God’s.” 

As  the  last  time  we  treated  of  the  first  ten  verses  of 
this  chapter,  to-day  we  shall  go  on  to  the  end,  merely 
recapitulating,  beforehand,  the  leading  subjects  we  were 
then  led  to  enlarge  upon;  which  were,  first  — Paul’s 
treatment  of  the  Corinthian  Church  when  it  was  in  a 
state  of  schism,  broken  up  into  parties,  one  party  fol- 
lowing Apollos,  attracted  by  his  eloquence  ; another 
Paul,  attracted  by  his  doctrine  of  Christian  liberty  ; 
another  Peter,  whom  they  looked  on  as  the  champion 
of  the  Judaistic  tendency,  while  another  called  them- 
selves by  the  name  of  Christ.  And  the  schism  which 
thus  prevailed  was  no  light  matter,  for  it  was  not  only 
a proof  of  carnal  views,  but  it  amounted  also  to  a denial 
of  Christianity.  For  men  emancipated  by  Christ,  and 
given  direct  access  to  God,  to  return  again  to  allegiance 


40 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


to  men^  and  dependence  on  them,  was  voluntarily  to 
forfeit  all  Christian  privileges.  It  is  very  interesting  to 
observe  the  difference  in  St.  Paul’s  treatment  of  the 
Corinthian  Church  from  his  treatment  of  other 
Churches.  He  says  to  them,  I have  fed  you  with 
milk,  for  hitherto  ye  were  not  able  to  bear  meat,  neither 
yet  are  ye  able.”  There  is  a remarkable  difference 
between  this  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  and  that  to  the 
Ephesians.  It  is  not  in  the  former  that  we  find  the 
Apostle  speaking  of  the  breadth  and  length  and  depth 
and  height  of  the  love  of  Christ,  which  })asseth  know- 
ledge ; nor  there  do  we  find  him  speaking  of  the  beauty 
and  necessity  of  self-sacrifice.  These  were  subjects 
too  high  for  them  as  yet,  but  instead  we  find  him  deal- 
ing almost  entirely  with  the  hard,  stern  duties  and 
commandments  of  every-day  life. 

St.  Paul’s  twofold  method  of  dealing  with  the  Corin- 
thian Church  in  their  state  of  faction  was,  — 

1.  Throuo;h  an  economic  reserve  of  Truth. 

By  which  ^ve  understood,  that  first  principles  only 
were  distributed  to  feeble  minds,  to  men  who  were 
incapable  of  the  Higher  Life  ; that  they  were  fed  with 
these,  in  the  same  way  as  children,  incapable  of  receiv- 
ing meat,  are  nourished  with  milk. 

2.  The  depreciation  of  the  Human,  through  the 
reduction  of  ministers  to  their  true  position  ; by  pointing 
out  that  they  were  only  laborers,  servants  in  God’s 
world,  only  a part  of  the  curious  clockwork  of  this 
world  of  His.  Thus  each  would  be  a part  of  one  great 
Whole,  each  would  be  called  upon  to  work,  as  essential 
to  this,  but  not  to  exhibit  his  own  idea;  each  would 
best  preserve  his  own  individuality,  when  most  acting 
as  a fellow-worker  with  God. 

Now  observe  ! Here  was  a true  notion  of  Christian 
unity  as  opposed  to  schism.  He  that  planteth,  and 
he  that  watereth,  are  one.”  And  this  is  the  idea  I have 
so  often  given  you  — unity  in  variety.  St.  Paul  did 
not  say  you  are  wrong,  you  ought  to  be  all  of  one  way 
of  thinking.  No  ; he  said  rather,  there  is  one  truth, 
the  ritualistic  truth,  in  St.  Peter’s  and  St.  James’s 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


41 


mind  ; there  is  another,  the  truth  of  Christian  Liberty, 
which  I teach  you  ; there  is  another,  the  truth  of  grace 
and  beauty  in  Apollos,  and  all  together  build  up  a 
Church.  And  he  made  use  of  two  metaphors,  drawn 
from  agriculture  and  architecture.  How  foolish  it 
would  be  to  dispute  about  the  respective  merits  of 
planting  and  w^atering ! Could  there  be  a harvest 
without  either  ? How  foolish  to  talk  of  the  superiority 
of  capital  over  labor,  or  labor  over  capital ! Could 
anything  be  done  without  both?  And  again,  who 
would  dream  in  architecture  of  a discussion  about  the 
comparative  importance  of  the  foundation  and  tiie 
superstructure  ! Are  not  both  necessary  to  each  other’s 
perfection  ? And  so  to  dispute  whether  the  Gospel 
according  to  St.  Paul  or  St.  James,  is  the  right  Gospel, 
to  call  the  latter  ‘‘  Straminca  Epistola,”  is  to  neglect 
the  majestic  entireness,  and  the  unity  of  the  truth  of 
God.  And  observe,  St.  Paul  did  not  say,  as  many  now 
would  say,  you  must  attain  unity  by  giving  up  your 
own  views,  and  each  one  holding  the  same.  He  did 
not  say,  Mine  are  right,  and  the  followers  of  Apollos 
and  Peter  must  follow  me  ; but  he  said  that,  whatever 
became  of  their  particular  views,  they  were  to  rejoice 
in  this  — not  that  they  were  Christians  of  a particular 
kind,  but  that  they  had  a common  Christianity.  There 
was  and  could  be  but  One  Foundation,  and  he  who 
worked,  whether  as  builder  or  architect,  on  this,  was 
one  with  all  the  rest.  The  chapter  concludes  with  — 

I.  An  address  to  ministers. 

H.  To  congregations. 

o o 

I.  To  ministers.  Let  every  man  take  heed,  how 
he  buildeth  thereupon  ; for  other  foundation  can  no  man 
lay  than  that  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ.”  First, 
then,  ministers  are  to  preach  as  the  foundation  — 
Christ. 

Now,  let  us  protest  against  all  party  uses  of  this  ex- 
pression. The  preaching  of  Christ  means  simply,  the 
preaching  of  Christ.  Recollect  what  Paul’s  own  Chris- 


42 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


tianity  was.  A few  facts  respecting  liis  Redeemer’s 
life,  a few  of  liis  Master’s  precepts,  such  as,  It  is  more 
blessed  to  give  than  to  receive,”  out  of  whicli  he  educed 
all  Christian  principles,  and  on  which  he  built  that  noble 
superstructure  — his  Epistles.  Remember  how  he 
sums  all  up.  ‘‘  That  I might  know  Him,  and  the  power 
of  His  resurrection,  and  the  fellowship  of  His  suffer- 
ings, being  made  conformable  unto  His  death.”  His 
Life,  Death,  and  Resurrection,  working  daily  in  us, 
being  made  manifest  in  our  body.”  And  again. 
Ever  bearing  about  in  the  body  the  dying  of  the  Lord 
Jesus.”  Settle  it  in  your  hearts ; Christianity  is 
Christ ; understand  Him,  breathe  His  Spirit,  compre- 
hend His  mind  : Christianity  is  a Life,  a Spirit.  Let 
self  die  with  Christ,  and  with  Him  rise  to  a life  of  holi- 
ness : and  then,  Avhether  you  are  a Minister  or  minis- 
tered to,  you  need  not  care  what  discussions  may  arise, 
nor  how  men  may  dispute  your  Christianity,  or  deny 
your  share  in  the  Gospel.  You  stand  upon  a rock. 

Next,  on  this  foundation  we  are  to  build  the  super- 
structure. Christianity  is  a few  living  pregnant  princi- 
ples^ and  on  these  you  may  construct  various  buildings. 
Thus  in  doctrine  you  may  on  this  erect  Calvinism,  or 
Arminianism ; or  in  ecclesiastical  polity,  you  may  build 
on  this  a severe,  simple  worship,  or  a highly  ritual  one, 
or  an  imaginative  one  with  a splendid  cultus.  Or,  in 
life,  you  may  live  on  this  devotionally  or  actively  ; you 
may  pursue  the  life  of  the  hermit  of  the  third  century, 
or  of  the  Christian  merchant  of  the  nineteenth.  For 
Christianity  is  capable  of  endless  application  to  different 
circumstances,  ages,  and  intellects. 

Now,  in  the  words  of  this  twelfth  verse,  observe  that 
there  are  not  six  kinds  of  superstructure,  but  two. 
Gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones,  which  are  the  materials 
of  the  temple  ; wood,  hay,  and  stubble,  with  which  a 
cottage  is  erected  ; but  in  these  buildings  the  materials 
of  each  are  of  various  degrees  of  excellence,  and  in  the 
latter,  good,  bad,  and  indifferent.  Now,  what  do  these 
syml)olize  ? As  1 said  before,  perhaps  doctrines  or  sys- 
tems ; but  more  })robably  they  are  to  make  us  recollect 


TO  THE  CORINTITIANS. 


43 


that  the  Church  is  made  up  of  persons  of  different  kinds 
of  character  built  up  by  different  ministers.  Some  of 
straw,  utterly  worthless  ; some  of  silver,  sound,  good, 
but  not  brilliant  men  ; some  of  gold,  characters  in  which 
there  seems  nothing  of  base  alloy,  true  to  the  very 
centre  ; some  of  precious  stones,  men  in  whom  gifts  are 
so  richly  mingled  with  useful  qualities,  that  they  are  as 
jewels  in  the  Redeemer’s  crown.  And  such  was  the 
author  of  this  Epistle.  It  does  our  heart  good  to  know 
that  out  of  our  frail  Humanity,  anything  so  good  and 
great  has  arisen  as  the  Apostle  of  the  Gentiles. 

Now  there  follows  from  all  this,  the  doctrine  of  the 
rewardableness  of  Work.  All  were  one,  on  the  one 
foundation,  yet  St.  Paul  modifies  this  : they  were  not 
one,  in  such  a sense  that  all  their  work  was  equally 
valuable,  for  every  man  shall  receive  his  own  reward, 
according  to  his  labor.”  It  is  incredible  that  the  mere 
theologian  defending  the  outworks,  writing  a book  on 
the  Evidences  of  Christianity,  or  elaborating  a theolog- 
ical system,  shall  be  as  blessed  as  he,  who  has  hungered 
and  thirsted  with  Christ,  and  like  Christ,  suffered. 

To  sit  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left  of  the 
Father,”  can  be  given  but  to  them  who  have  drunk  of 
Christ’s  cup  of  Self-sacrifice,  and  been  baptized  with  His 
Baptism  of  Suffering.  Nevertheless,  each  in  his  own 
way  shall  gain  the  exact  recompense  of  what  he  has 
done.  Therefore,  Christian  men,  work  on  — your 
work  is  not  in  vain.  A cup  of  cold  water,  given  in  the 
name  of  a disciple,  shall  not  lose  its  reward. 

There  is  also  here  a distinction  between  the  truth  of 
work  and  its  sincerity.  In  that  day  nothing  shall  stand 
but  what  is  true  ; but  the  sincere  worker,  even  of  un- 
true work,  shall  be  saved;  If  any  man’s  work  shall  be 
burned,  he  shall  suffer  loss : but  he  himself  shall  be 
saved  ; yet  so  as  by  fire.”  Sincerity  shall  save  him  in 
that  day,  but  it  cannot  accredit  his  work.  But  what  is 
this  day  ? When  is  this  day  ? Generally  speaking, 
we  say  that  it  is  Time  ; but  more  particularly  the  Trial 
day,  which  every  advent  is,  and  especially  the  last : in 
which  nothing  will  endure  but  what  is  real.  Nothing 


44 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


gilded  or  v<Tniished  will  remain,  but  only  precious 
stones,  gold,  silver  ; and  these  only  so  far  as  they  are 
unmixed;  for  just  as  fire  burns  straw,  so  must  all  that 
is  not  based  on  the  truth  perish.  Then  the  elaborate 
systems  of  theology,  built  by  our  subtle,  restless,  over- 
refined  intellects,  shall  be  tried  and  found  worthless. 
Then  many  a Church  order,  elaborately  contrived,  shall 
be  found  something  unnecessarily  added  to  the  founda- 
tion, and  overlaying  it.  And  then  many  a minister,  who 
has  prided  himself  on  the  number  of  liis  listeners,  will 
be  stripped  of  his  vain-glory,  if  the  characters,  which  he 
has  produced,  be  found  wanting  ; if  that  which  seems 
to  be  souls  won  for  God,  turns  out  to  be  only  hearts 
won  for  self.  Yet  here  a consolation  is  given  to  us, 
‘‘Yet  he  himself  shall  be  saved,  but  so  as  by  fire  ; ” and 
this  is  the  comfort.  Sincerity  does  not  verify  doctrine, 
but  it  saves  the  man  ; his  person  is  accepted,  though  his 
work  perish.  Hence  we  trust  that  many  a persecutor 
like  Paul  shall  be  received  at  last ; that  many  a bigot 
like  James  and  John,  desiring  to  call  down  fire  from 
heaven,  shall  obtain  mercy,  because  he  did  it  ignorantly. 
He  shall  be  saved,  while  all  his  work  shall  be  destroyed, 
just  as,  to  use  St.  Paul’s  metaphor,  a builder  escapes 
from  his  house  which  has  been  burnt  over  his  head,  and 
stands  trembling,  yet  safe,  looking  on  his  work  in  ruins, 
“ saved,  yet  so  as  by  fire.” 

II.  An  address  to  congregations. 

1.  A warning  against  all  Ministers,  who  should  so 
teach  as  to  split  the  Church  into  divisions.  “ Know  ye 
not  that  ye  are  the  temple  of  God,  and  that  the  Spirit 
of  God  dwelleth  in  you?  If  any  man  defile  the  temple 
of  God,  him  shall  God  destroy  ; for  the  temple  of  God 
is  holy,  which  temple  ye  are.” 

Let  us  consider  in  what  sense  the  word  “ holy  ” is 
used.  Jdie  Bible  often  speaks  of  things,  not  as  they  are 
actually  in  themselves,  but  as  they  exist  in  God’s  Idea. 
So  it  declares  of  Humanity,  that  it  is  “very  good;” 
saying  it  of  man^  but  not  of  men^  wno  are  often  very 
Ixid.  And  so  also  the  representation  of  the  Church  is  a 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


45 


thing  wholly  ideal,  without  spot  or  wrinkle,  or  any 
such  thing ; ” whereas,  actual  churches  are  infinitely 
below  this  ideal.  Now  observe  that  St.  Paul  calls  all 
in  the  Corinthian  Church  holy,”  and  this,  though  he 
knew  that  some  were  even  incestuous  — nay,  though  he 
says  in  the  very  verse  where  he  calls  them  holy,  that  some 
might  be  defiled,  and  some  destroyed.  And  hence  it 
follows  that  we  have  no  right  to  divide  our  congrega- 
tions into  regenerate  and  unregenerate,  worldly  and  un- 
worldly, Christian  and  un-Christian.  Him  who  doeth 
this  shall  God  destroy.”  Woe,  therefore,  to  that 
minister,  who  by  arbitrary  distinctions  respecting  world- 
liness for  instance,  and  unworldliness,  so  divides  the 
Church  of  God  ; making  the  religious  into  a party, 
often  making  sad  hearts  which  God  has  not  made  sad, 
and  nursing  a set  of  Pharisees  into  a delusion  that  they 
are  a Church  of  God,  because  they  follow  some  Paul  or 
some  Apollos. 

2.  A warnino;  ao:ainst  sectarianism,  on  the  ground  of 
Christian  liberty.  Therefore  let  no  man  glory  in 
men,  for  all  things  are  yours  ; whether  Paul,  or  Apollos, 
or  Cephas,  or  the  world,  or  life,  or  death,  or  things 
present,  or  things  to  come;  all  are  yours.”  Man  enters 
this  world,  finding  himself  in  the  midst  of  mighty 
Forces,  stronger  than  himself,  of  which  he  seems  the 
sport  and  prey.  But  soon  Christianity  reveals  to  him 
God’s  living,  personal  Will,  which  makes  these  things 
co-operate  for  his  good.  And  so  he  learns  his  own  free- 
will, and  uses  them  as  the  sailor  does  the  winds,  which 
as  he  uses  them  become  his  enemies  or  his  friends. 

Then  it  is  that  he  is  emancipated  from  the  iron  bond- 
age to  circumstances : then  all  things  are  his  — this 
marvellous  Life,  so  full  of  endless  meaning,  so  pregnant 
with  infinite  opportunities.  Still  more.  Death,  which 
seems  to  come  like  a tyrant,  commanding  him  when  it 
will.  Death  is  his  in  Christ,  his  minister  to  lead  him  to 
Higher  Life.  Paul  is  his,  to  teach  him  freedom. 
Apollos  his,  to  animate  him  with  his  eloquence.  Cephas 
his,  to  fire  him  with  his  courage.  Every  author  his, 
to  impart  to  him  his  treasures. 


46 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


But  remark,  that  St.  Paul  refers  all  this  to  the  uni- 
versal Law  of  Sacritice.  All  things  are  ours  on  this 
condition  — that  we  are  Christ’s.  The  i^aw  which 
made  Christ  God’s  has  made  us  Christ’s.  All  thine-s 

^ o 

are  yours,  that  is,  serve  you  : but  they  only  discharge 
the  mission  and  obey  the  law  involuntarily,  that  you  are 
called  on  to  discharge  and  obey  voluntardy  : the  great 
law,  which  makes  obedience  Blessedness,  the  law  to 
which  Christ  was  subject,  for  Christ  was  God’s.”  So 
that,  when  the  law  of  the  Cross  is  the  law  of  our  being, 
when  we  have  learnt  to  surrender  ourselves  ; then,  and 
then  only,  we  are  free  from  all  things  : they  are  ours, 
not  we  theirs  : we  use  them,  instead  of  being  crushed  by 
them.  The  Christian  is  creation’s  heir.”  He  may 
say  triumphantly,  The  world,  the  world  is  mine ! ” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


47 


LECTURE  VIII. 

November  16,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  iv.  1-7.  — “ Let  a man  so  account  of  us,  as  of  the  min- 
isters of  Christ,  and  stewards  of  the  mysteries  of  God.  — Moreover  it 
is  required  in  stewards,  that  a man  be  found  hiithful.  — But  with 
me  it  is  a very  small  thing  that  I should  be  judged  of  you,  or  of  man’s 
judgment;  yea,  I judge  not  mine  own  self.  — For  I know  nothing  by 
myself;  yet  am  I not  hereby  justified  : but  he  that  judgeth  me  is  the 
Lord.  — Therefore  judge  nothing  before  the  time,  until  the  Lord  come, 
who  both  will  bring  to  light  the  hidden  things  of  darkness,  and  will 
make  manifest  the  counsel’s  of  the  hearts  : and  then  shall  every  man 
liave  praise  of  God.  — And  these  things,  brethren,  I have  in  a figure 
transferred  to  myself  and  to  Apollos  for  your  sakes;  that  ye  might 
learn  in  us  not  to  think  of  men  above  that  which  is  written,  that  no 
one  of  you  be  pufied  up  for  one  against  another.  — For  who  maketh 
thee  to  differ  from  another  ? and  what  hast  thou  that  thou  didst  not 
receive  ? Now  if  thou  didst  receive  it,  why  dost  thou  glory,  as  if  thou 
hadst  not  received  it  ? ” 

The  fourth  chapter,  like  the  third,  divides  itself  into 
two  sections.  From  the  first  to  the  seventh  verse, 
an  address  is  given  to  a congregation.  From  the 
seventh  to  the  end  of  the  chapter,  St.  Paul  addresses 
ministers.  To-day  our  subject,  comprised  in  the  first 
six  verses,  is  the  true  estimate  of  the  Christian  ministry. 

Now  the  Christian  ministry  may  be  either  over- 
glorified or  undervalued,  and  in  correction  of  both  these 
errors,  St.  Paul  says,  Let  a man  account  of  us  as  of 
the  ministers  of  Christ,  and  stewards  of  the  mysteries 
of  God.” 

We  consider  then, 

I.  The  undue  glorification  of  the  Christian  ministry. 
II.  The  depreciation  of  the  same. 

I.  The  Christian  minister  may  be  glorified  or  made 
an  idol  of  in  two  ways,  by  party-worship  of  the  man^ 


48 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ETISTLES 


or  by  attacliing  a mystical  or  supernatural  power  to  the 
office, 

1st,  then,  by  the  worship  of  the  man.  This  was  the 
particular  clanger  of  the  Corinthians,  as  we  see  dis- 
tinctly stated  in  the  6th  verse  of  this  chapter.  In 
pronouncing  his  judgment  in  this  verse,  St.  Paul,  with 
great  delicacy,  selects  himself  and  Apollos  for  his  in- 
stances, because  there  could  be  no  suspicion  of  rivalry 
between  them,  for  Apollos  was  of  the  same  school  of 
thought  as  himself.  He  speaks  of  his  own  party,  and 
that  of  his  friend,  as  worthy  of  censure,  in  order  not 
to  blame  by  name  other  parties,  and  the  sectarian  dis- 
ciples of  other  teachers  in  Corinth.  And  yet  how 
natural ! Let  us  take  these  cases  as  specimens  of  all. 
Paul  and  Apollos  each  taught  a truth,  that  had  taken 
possession  of  their  souls.  St.  Paul  preached  one,  as 
we  know,  which  he  called  my  Gospel,”  one  peculiarly 
his  own.  Such  is  the  case,  too,  with  an  inferior  minis- 
ter. Each  man,  each  teacher,  now  as  then,  reveals  to 
his  hearers  that  truth  which  lias  most  filled  his  own 
soul,  and  which  is  his  peculiarly  because  it  most  agrees 
with  his  character.  Well,  this  truth  of  his  commends 
itself  to  kindred  spirits  in  his  congregation  : it  expresses 
their  difficulties,  it  is  a flood  of  light  on  many  a dark 
passage  of  their  history ; no  wonder  that  they  view 
with  gratitude,  and  an  enthusiasm  bordering  on  venera- 
tion, the  messen.o;er  of  this  blessedness. 

And  no  wonder  that  the  truth  thus  taught  becomes 
at  last  the  chief,  almost  the  sole,  truth  proclaimed  by 
him.  First,  because  every  man  has  but  one  mind,  and 
must,  therefore,  repeat  himself.  And,  secondly,  be- 
cause that  which  has  won  attachment  from  his  congre- 
gation, can  scarcely  be  made  subordinate  in  subsequent 
teaching  without  losing  that  attachment ; so  that,  partly 
for  the  sake  of  apparent  consistency,  partly  to  avoid 
oflen(*e,  and  partly  from  that  conservatism  of  mental 
habits,  which  makes  it  so  difficult  to  break  through 
systems,  ministers  and  congregations  often  narrow  into 
a l>arty,  and  hold  one  truth  especially.  And  so  far 
they  do  well  ; but  if  they  shall  go  on  to  hold  that  truth 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


49 


to  tlie  exclusion  of  all  other  truths,  so  far  as  they  do 
that,  it  is  not  well ; and  nothing  is  more  remarkable 
than  the  bitter  and  jealous  antagonism  with  which 
party-men,  who  have  reached  this  point,  watch  all 
other  religious  factions  but  their  own.  And  then  the 
sectarian  work  is  done ; the  minister  is  at  once  the  idol 
and  the  slave  of  the  party,  which  he  rules  by  flatter- 
ing its  bigotry,  and  stimulating  its  religious  antipa- 
thies. 

Now  St.  Paul  meets  this  with  his  usual  delicacy : 

These  things  I have  in  a figure  transferred  to  myself 
and  to  Apollos  for  your  sakes,  that  ye  may  learn  in 
us  not  to  think  of  men  more  highly  than  it  is  written, 
and  that  no  one  of  you  may  be  puffed  up  for  one 
against  another.”  And  not  for  Corinth  only,  but  for 
all  who  were,  or  should  be,  his  brethren  in  Christ,  did 
St.  Paul  transfer  these  things  to  Apollos  and  himself — 
for  have  I not  given  you  a Home  history  ? — the  exact 
and  likeliest  history  of  many  an  English  party,  which 
began  with  a truth,  and  then  called  it  the  truth  ; flat- 
tering one  another,  and  being  puffed  up  for  one 
against  another,”  and  manifestino;  that  with  all  their 
high  professions,  they  were  carnal,  and  walked  as 
men.”  But  here  let  us  observe  the  glorious  unself- 
ishness of  this  noble  Apostle.  Think  you,  there  was 
no  fire  of  ambition  in  his  heart  — that  ardent,  fiery 
heart  ? An  Apostle,  yes  — but  not  exempt  from 
temptation  : with  the  feelings  and  passions  of  a Man  ! 
Do  you  imagine  he  did  not  perceive,  what  is  so  evi- 
dent to  us,  the  opportunity  within  his  grasp,  of  being 
the  great  Leader  in  the  Corinthian  Church  ? Think 
you  that  he  knew  nothing  of  that  which  is  so  dear 
to  many  a priest  and  minister  in  our  day — the  power 
of  gaining  the  confidence  of  his  people,  the  power  of 
having  his  every  word  accepted  as  infallible  ? 

Yet  hear  this  sublime  teacher.  I am  a minister,  a 
steward  only.  Who  is  Paul  ? I dare  not  be  a party- 
leader,  for  I am  the  servant  of  Him  who  came  to  make 
all  one.  He  that  watereth,  and  he  that  planteth,  are 
all  one  — they,  even  those  Judaizing  teachers,  who 
6 


60 


LECTURES  OA  THE  EPISTLES 


named  themselves  after  Peter,  are  all  servants  with  me 
of  Christ.” 

■ 2d.  Another  mode  of  undue  glorification  of  the  min- 
istry: by  attributing  supernatural  powers  and  imaginary 
gifts  to  the  office.  Now  this  mode  was  quite  different, 
apparently,  from  the  other ; so  much  so,  as  plainly  to 
mark  a party  in  the  opposite  extreme ; and  it  was  far 
more  necessary  to  warn  some  men  against  this  view, 
for  many  who  would  have  refused  submission  to  a 
Man,  would  have  readily  yielded  it  to  an  Office.  Many 
will  refuse  obedience  to  one  standing  on  his  per- 
sonal gifts,  or  party  views  ; but  when  one  claiming  the 
Power  of  the  Keys,  and  pretending  to  the  power  of 
miraculous  conveyance  of  the  Eternal  Spirit  in  Baptism, 
or  pretending,  in  shrouded  words  of  mystery,  to  trans- 
form the  elements  of  bread  and  wine  into  the  very 
Body  and  Blood  of  Christ ; or,  declaring  that  he  has 
an  especial  power  to  receive  confession,  and  a miracu- 
lous right  to  forgive  sins,  therefore  claims  homage  from 
the  congregation ; then,  grave  men,  who  turn  con- 
temptuously from  the  tricks  of  the  mere  Preacher,  are 
sometimes  subdued  before  those  of  the  Priest.  And 
yet  this  is  but  the  same  thing  in  another  form,  against 
which  St.  Paul  contended  in  Corinth  ; for  pride  and 
Vanity  can  assume  different  forms,  and  sometimes  ap- 
pear in  the  very  guise  of  Humility.  Power  is  dear  to 
man,  and  for  the  substance,  who  would  not  sacrifice 
the  shadow  ? Who  would  not  depreciate  himself,  if 
by  magnifying  his  office  he  obtained  the  power  he 
loved  ? 

We  have  heard  of  Bernard,  who,  professing  to  be 
unsecular,  yet  ruled  the  secular  affairs  of  the  world. 
We  have  heard  of  men,  who,  cut  off*  from  human  af- 
fections, and  crushing  them  relentlessly,  have  resigned 
every  endearment  in  life,  who  nevertheless  reigned  in 
their  sackcloth  with  a power  which  the  imjierial  purple 
never  gave.  Affecting  to  live  apart  from  human  policy, 
and  human  business,  they  s])read  their  influence  through 
every  de])artment  of  human  thought  and  life,  and  gov- 
ernment. To  apj)ear  more  than  human,  to  seem  a 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


51 


spiritual  being,  above  their  fellow-men  ; for  this,  men 
formerly,  as  well  as  now,  have  parted  with  all  that 
is  best  in  our  humanity,  its  tenderest  affections,  its 
most  innocent  relaxations,  and  its  most  sacred  and 
kindliest  enjoyments.  History  affords  innumerable  ex- 
amples of  this. 

II.  The  depreciation  of  the  Office. 

There  is  a way  common  enough,  but  not  specially 
alluded  to  here,  in  which  the  Minister  of  the  Church 
of  Christ  is  viewed  simply  in  connection  with  an  Es- 
tablishment as  a very  useful  regulation,  on  a par  with 
the  institutions  of  the  Magistracy  and  the  Police.  In 
this  light  the  minister’s  chief  duty  is  to  lecture  the 
poor,  and  of  all  the  thousand  texts  which  bear  on 
political  existence  to  preach  from  only  two,  Render 
unto  Caesar  the  things  which  are  Caesar’s,”  and  Let 
every  soul  be  subject  to  the  higher  powers,”  to  be  the 
treasurer  and  regulator  of  the  different  charitable  in- 
stitutions in  the  town  and  village,  and  to  bless  the  rich 
man’s  banquet.  Thus  the  office  is  simply  considered  a 
profession,  and  the  common  term  living  ” is  the 
truest  exposition  of  the  dignity  in  which  it  is  held.  It 
is  a ‘‘  living”  for  the  younger  branches  of  noble  houses, 
and  an  advance  for  the  sons  of  those  of  a lower  grade 
who  manifest  any  extraordinary  aptness  for  learning, 
and  who,  through  the  ministry,  may  rise  to  a higher 
position  in  social  life. 

In  this  view  a degrading  compact  is  made  between 
the  Minister  and  Society.  If  he  will  not  interfere  with 
abuses,  but  leave  things  as  they  are  : if  he  will  lash 
only  the  vices  of  an  age  that  is  gone  by^  and  the  heresies 
of  other  churches  : if  he  will  teach,  not  the  truth  that 
is  welling  up  in  his  own  soul,  but  that  which  the  con- 
ventionalism of  the  world  pronounces  to  be  the  Truth  — 
then  shall  there  be  shown  to  him  a certain  considera- 
tion ; not  the  awful  reverence  accorded  to  the  Priest, 
nor  the  affectionate  gratitude  yielded  to  the  Christian 
minister,  but  the  half-respectful,  condescending  patron- 
age which  comes  from  men,  who  stand  by  the  Church 


52 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


as  they  would  stand  by  any  other  old  time-honored 
Institution  ; who  would  think  it  extremely  ill-bred  to 
take  God’s  name  in  vain  in  the  presence  of  a clergy- 
man, and  extremely  umnaidy  to  insult  a man  whose 
profession  prevents  liis  resenting  indignities. 

Now  it  is  enough  to  quote  the  Apostle’s  view,  ‘‘  Let 
a man  so  account  of  us  as  of  the  ministers  of  Christ,” 
and  at  once  you  are  in  a different  atmosphere  of 
thought. 

TJiese  things  are  not  essential  to  the  position,  for  that 
may  cease  to  be  respectable.  Society  may  annihilate  a 
Church  Establishment,  but  yet  that  which  is  essential 
in  the  office  remains  : the  minister  is  still  a minister  of 
Christ,  a steward  of  the  mysteries  of  God,  whose  chief 
glory  consists  not  in  that  he  is  respectable,  or  well-off, 
or  honored,  but  in  that  he  serves^  like  Him,  ‘‘  Who 
came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister.” 

Lastly,  the  office  may  be  depreciated  by  such  a view 
as  these  Corinthians  were  tempted  to  take. 

The  Corinthians  measured  their  teachers  by  their 
gifts,  and  in  proportion  to  their  acceptability  to  them. 
So  now,  men  seem  to  look  on  the  Ministry  as  an  Insti- 
tution intended  for  their  comfort,  for  their  gratification, 
nay,  even  for  their  pastime.  In  this  way  the  preaching 
of  the  Gospel  seems  to  be  something  like  a lecture, 
professorial  or  popular ; a thing  to  be  freely  found  fault 
with,  if  it  has  not  given  comfort,  or  shown  ability,  or 
been  striking  or  original  ; a free  arena  for  light  discus- 
sion and  flippant  criticism  ; for,  of  course,  if  a man  had 
a riglit  to  be  an  admirer  of  Paul,  he  had  also  to  be  a 
blamer  of  Apollos. 

Now  see  how  St.  Paul  meets  this.  With  me  it  is 
a very  small  thing  that  I should  be  judged  of  you,  or 
of  man’s  judgment.”  He  simply  refuses  to  submit  his 
authority  to  any  judgment ; and  this  you  will  say,  per- 
chance, was  priestly  pilde,  a characteristic  haughtiness. 
Exactly  the  reverse,  it  was  ])rofouiid  humility.  Not 
because  he  was  above  judgment,  not  because  he  was 
infallible,  or  teaching  truths  too  grand  for  them,  but 
because  he  was  to  be  judged  before  a tribunal  far  more 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


63 


awful  than  Corinthian  society.  Not  by  man  would  he 
be  judged,  because  fidelity  is  the  chief  excellence  in  a 
steward,  and  fidelity  is  precisely  that  which  men  cannot 
judge.  They  can  only  judge  of  gifts,  whereas  the  true 
dignity  of  the  minister  consists  not  in  gifts,  nor  in 
popularity,  nor  in  success,  but  simply  in  having  faith- 
fully used  his  powers,  and  boldly  spoken  the  truth 
which  was  in  him. 

St.  Paul  refuses  even  to  pass  judgment  on  himself. 
He  says,  ‘‘  I know  nothing  by  myself.”  In  the  com- 
mon reading  this  passage  would  seem  to  mean,  What- 
ever I know  is  not  by  myself,  but  by  a Higher  Power ; 
but  what  the  translator  meant,  and  as  it  would  even 
now  be  understood  by  our  north-countrymen,  is  this, 
‘‘  I know  nothing  against  myself,”  I am  not  conscious 
of  untruth,  or  lack  of  fidelity.” 

“ Yet,”  he  goes  on  to  say,  am  I not  hereby  justi- 
fied : but  He  that  judge th  me  is  the  Lord.”  Here, 
then,  is  what  St.  Paul  appeals  to,  for  another  Eye  had 
seen,  and  He  could  tell  how  far  the  sentence  was  framed 
for  man’s  applause ; how  far  the  unpleasant  truth  was 
softened,  not  for  love’s  sake,  but  simply  from  cowardice. 
Even  the  bold  unpopularity,  that  cares  not  whom  it 
offends,  may  be,  and  often  is,  merely  the  result  of  a 
contentious,  warlike  spirit,  defiant  of  all  around,  and 
proud  in  a fancied  superiority.  But  God  discerns 
through  all  this,  and  sees  how  far  independence  is  only 
another  name  for  stubbornness  ; how  even  that  beautiful 
avoidance  of  sectarianism  is  merely,  in  many  cases,  a 
love  of  standing  alone  ; a proud  resolve  not  to  interfere 
with  any  other  man’s  ministry,  or  to  allow  any  man  to 
interfere  with  his. 

In  applying  this  to  our  daily  life,  we  must,  then, 

1.  Learn  not  to  judge,  for  we  do  not  know  the  heart’s 
secrets.  We  judge  men  by  gifts,  or  by  a correspond- 
ence with  our  own  peculiarities ; but  God  judges  by 
fidelity. 

Many  a dull  sermon  is  the  result  of  humble  powers, 
honestly  cultivated,  whilst  many  a brilliant  discourse 


54 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


arises  merely  from  a love  of  display.  Many  a diligent 
and  active  ministry  proceeds  from  the  love  of  power. 

2.  Learn  to  be  neitlier  depressed  unduly  by  blame, 
nor,  on  the  other  side,  to  be  too  much  exalted  by  praise. 
Life’s  experience  should  teach  us  this.  Even  in  war, 
honors  fall  as  by  chance,  with  cruel  and  ludicrous  injus- 
tice ; often  the  hero,  whom  the  populace  worship,  is 
only  made  so  by  accident.  Often  the  coronet  falls  on 
brows  that  least  deserve  it. 

And  our  own  individual  experience  should  teach  us 
how  little  men  know  us  ! How  often  when  we  have 
been  most  praised  and  loved,  have  we  been  conscious 
of  another  motive  actuating,  than  that  which  the  world 
has  given  us  credit  for  ; and  we  have  been  blamed, 
perhaps  disgraced,  when,  if  all  the  circumstances  were 
known,  we  should  have  been  covered  with  honor. 
Therefore,  let  us  strive,  as  much  as  possible,  to  be  tran- 
quil ; smile  when  men  sneer  ; be  humble  when  they 
praise  ; patient  when  they  blame.  Their  judgment 
will  not  last;  ‘‘man’s  judgment,”  literally  “man’s 
day,”  is  only  for  a time,  but  God’s  is  for  Eternity.  So, 
would  you  be  secure  alike  when  the  world  pours  its 
censure  or  its  applause  upon  you  ? feel  hourly  that  God 
will  judge.  That  will  be  your  safeguard  under  both. 
It  will  be  a small  thing  to  you  to  be  judged  of  any 
man’s  judgment,  for  your  cause  will  be  pleaded  before 
the  Judge  and  the  Discerner  of  all  secrets. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


56 


LECTURE  IX. 

November  23,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  iv.  7-21.  — ‘^For  who  maketh  thee  to  differ  from 
another  ? and  what  hast  thou  that  thou  didst  not  receive  ? now  if 
thou  didst  receive  it,  why  dost  thou  glory,  as  if  thou  hadst  not  re- 
ceived it?  — Now  ye  are  full,  now  ye  are  rich,  ye  have  reigned  as 
kings  without  us;  and  I would  to  God  ye  did  reign,  that  we  also  might 
reign  with  you.  — For  I think  that  God  hath  set  forth  us  the  Apostles 
last,  as  it  were  appointed  to  death:  for  we  are  made  a spectacle  unto 
the  world,  and  to  angels,  and  to  men.  — We  are  fools  for  Christ’s 
sake,  but  ye  are  wise  in  Christ;  we  are  weak,  but  ye  are  strong;  ye 
are  honorable,  but  we  are  despised.  — Even  unto  this  present  hour  we 
both  hunger,  and  thirst,  and  are  naked,  and  are  buffeted,  and  have 
no  certain  dwelling-place  : — And  labor,  working  with  our  own  hands  : 
being  reviled,  we  bless;  being  persecuted,  we  suffer  it;  — Being  de- 
famed, we  entreat : we  are  made  as  the  filth  of  the  earth,  and  are  the 
offscouring  of  all  things  unto  this  day.  — I write  not  these  things  to 
shame  you,  but  as  my  beloved  sons  I warn  you.  — For  though  ye 
have  ten  thousand  instructors  in  Christ,  yet  have  ye  not  many 
fathers  : for  in  Christ  Jesus  I have  begotten  you  through  the  Gospel. 
— Wherefore  I beseech  you,  be  ye  followers  of  me.  — For  this  cause 
have  I sent  unto  you  Timotheus,  who  is  my  beloved  son,  and  fiiithful 
in  the  Lord,  who  shall  bring  you  into  remembrance  of  my  ways  which 
be  in  Christ,  as  I teach  everywhere  in  every  church.  — Now  some  are 
puffed  up,  as  though  I would  not  come  to  you.  — But  I will  come  to 
you  shortly,  if  the  Lord  will,  and  will  know,  not  the  speech  of  them 
which  are  puffed  up,  but  the  power.  — For  the  kingdom  of  God 
is  not  in  word,  but  in  power.  — What  will  ye  ? shall  I come  unto 
you  with  a rod,  or  in  love,  and  in  the  spirit  of  meekness  ? ” 


The  former  part  of  this  chapter  is  addressed  to  con- 
gregations, in  order  that  a right  estimate  may  be  formed 
by  them  of  the  ministerial  office,  which  neither  on  the 
one  hand  ought  to  be  depreciated,  nor,  on  the  other,  to 
be  unduly  valued.  We  have  explained  how  St.  Paul’s 
view  was  in  opposition  to  all  tendencies  to  worship  the 
man,  or  to  represent  the  Office  as  magical  or  mysterious  ; 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  his  view  was  in  direct  opposition 
to  all  opinions  which  represent  it  as  a creature  and  in- 
stitution of  the  State,  or  which  value  it  only  as  a sphere 


56 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EnSTT.ES 


for  the  exhibition  of  gifts  and  talents.  And  one  defi- 
nition sufficed  tlie  Apostle  : ‘‘  Let  a in  in  so  account  of 
us  as  the  ministers  of  Christ,  and  stewards  of  the  mys- 
teries of  God.” 

And  in  reference  to  that  right,  so  liberally  assumed, 
of  passing  judgment,  of  awarding  praise  and  blame,  of 
criticizing  individual  ministers,  the  Apostle  teaches  that 
the  same  definition  excludes  this  right,  because  of  the 
impossibility  of  judgment ; for  all  that  a steward  can 
have  of  merit  is  fidelity,  and  fidelity  is  exactly  that  which 
men  cannot  judge  — it  is  a secret  hidden  with  God. 

Now  this  sin  of  sectarianism  was  not  imputable  to  the 
congregation  only.  It  was  also  shared  by  their  minis- 
ters. There  were  those  who  made  themselves  leaders 
of  parties,  those  who  accepted  and  gloried  in  adulation, 
those  who  unduly  assumed  mysterious  powers,  magnify- 
ing their  office,  that  they  might  personally  have  that 
spiritual  power  which  to  most  men  is  so  grateful. 

And  here,  again,  is  shown  the  Apostle’s  singular  deli- 
cacy. He  names  none  of  those  leaders,  none  of  those 
who  were  vain  of  their  eloquence  or  gifts.  He  only 
speaks  of  those  who  were  involuntarily  raised  to  the 
headship  of  different  factions : Christ,  the  Lord  — 
Cephas  — Apollos  — and  himself.  ‘‘  These  things  I 
have  in  a figure  transferred  to  myself  and  to  Apollos 
for  your  sakes  : that  ye  might  learn  in  us  not  to  think 
of  men  above  that  which  is  written,  that  no  one  of  you 
be  puffed  up  for  one  against  another.”  That  is,  these 
are  named  for  a general,  not  a specific  purpose,  that  they 
might  learn  not  to  be  puffed  up  for  any  minister.  And 
just  because  the  accusation  is  not  special,  therefore 
should  it  be  universally  applied. 

We  gain  nothing  from  this  chapter  if  we  simply  learn 
the  historical  fact,  that  in  Corinth  there  were  certain 
j)arties  and  sects  ; and  that  St.  Paul  blamed  that  of 
Apollos,  and  that  of  Cephas,  and  that  likewise  which 
had  formed  round  himself;  unless  we  learn  also  that 
there  are  parties  amongst  ourselves  — one  setting  up 
the  Chur(;h  against  the  Hible,  and  another  the  Bible 
against  the  Church  ; one  calling  itself  the  Evangelical  ” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


57 


party,  par  excellence^  affixing  special  terms  to  the  names 
of  its  reviews  and  magazines,  as  if  no  other  publications 
deserved  the  name  of  Christian  ; another  party  calling 
itself  Anglo-Catholic,”  as  though  true  Catholicity  was 
not  rather  in  spirit  than  in  outward  form  ; every  party 
having  its  organ,  its  newspapers  and  reviews,  full  of 
faction  and  bitterness,  and  each  branding  the  other  with 
opprobrious  names.  And  unless  we  learn  that  St.  Paul 
would  have  blamed  us^  and  taken  our  party  spirit  as  a 
proof  that  we  are  ‘‘  carnal,  and  walk  as  men,”  we  gain 
nothing  from  the  delicacy  of  his  abstaining  from  men- 
tioning names^  that  he  might  teach  a general  principle. 

Another  lesson,  however,  we  gain.  This  is  an  anony- 
mous accusation ; but  of  that  rare  kind,  that  not  the 
name  of  the  accuser,  but  of  the  accused,  is  suppressed. 
If  all  this  were  anonymous  then,  surely  it  should  be  so 
with  us  now.  Our  accusations  should.be  personal,  that 
is,  directed  against  ourselves,  for  the  Apostle  names 
himself.  There  should  exist  a readiness  to  see  our  own 
faults,  and  those  of  our  own  Party  or  Church ; and  not 
only  the  faults  of  other  Parties  or  other  Churches. 

However,  though  St.  Paul  does  not  name  the  men, 
he  does  not  leave  them  unrebuked.  He  addresses  them 
in  a way  that  they  would  understand,  and  that  all  would 
understand  for  whom  comprehension  was  necessary ; for, 
in  verse  7,  he  turns  to  those  whom  he  had  all  along  in 
mind:  Who  maketh  thee  to  differ  from  another? 

and  what  hast  thou  that  thou  didst  not  receive  ? Now  if 
thou  didst  receive  it,  why  dost  thou  glory  as  if  thou 
hadst  not  received  it?”  And  having  thus  addressed 
himself  particularly  to  congregations,  St.  Paul,  in  con- 
clusion, speaks  especially  to  ministers. 

The  first  principle  that  he  lays  down  is  — 

A warning  to  those  who  fostered  the  personal  worship 
of  the  ministers  — that  is,  of  themselves. 

Secondly.  To  those  who  unduly  magnified  the  office. 

I.  To  such  as  fostered  a personal  worship  of  the 
ministers. 


58 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


The  qualities  wliich  are  requisite  for  tlie  higlier  part 
of  the  ministry  are — great  powers  of  sympathy;  a 
mind  masculine  in  its  power,  feminine  in  its  tenderness  ; 
humbleness  ; wisdom  to  direct ; that  knowledge  of  the 
world  which  the  Bible  calls  the  wisdom  of  the  serpent ; 
and  a knowledge  of  evil  which  comes  rather  from  re- 
pulsion from  it  than  from  personal  contact  with  it. 
But  those  qualitications  which  adapt  a man  for  the 
merely  showy  parts  of  the  Christian  ministry  are  of  an 
inferior  order  : fluency,  self-confidence,  tact,  a certain 
histrionic  power  of  conceiving  feelings,  and  expressing 
them. 

Now  it  was  precisely  to  this  class  of  qualities  that 
Christianity  opened  a new  field  in  places  such  as 
Corinth.  Men  who  had  been  unknown  in  their  trades, 
suddenly  found  an  opportunity  for  public  addresses,  for 
activity,  and  for  leadership.  They  became  fluent  and 
ready  talkers ; and  the  more  shallow  and  self-sufficient 
they  were,  the  more  likely  it  was  that  they  would  be- 
come the  leaders  of  a faction.  And  how  did  the  Apostle 
meet  this  ? 

He  had  shown  before  that  Christ  was  crucified  in 
weakness.  Now  he  shows  that  the  disposition  to  idolize 
intellect  was  directly  opposed  to  this — Christ  the  cruci- 
fied was  the  Power  of  God.  So  far,  then,  as  they 
taught  or  believed  that  the  power  lay  in  gifts,  so  far 
they  made  the  Cross  of  none  effect : ^Mf  any  man 
among  you  seemeth  to  be  wise  ” (i,  e,  has  the  reputa- 
tion), let  him  become  a fool,  that  he  may  be  wise.” 

I^ut  he  alleges  two  thoughts  in  verse  7,  to  check  this 
tendency.  Christian  dependence  : Who  maketh  thee 
to  differ  ? ” Christian  res])onsibility  : What  hast  thou, 
that  thou  didst  not  receive  ? ” 

This  tendency,  which  the  Apostle  rebukes,  besets  us 
ever.  Even  at  school,  in  the  earliest  stage  of  boyhood, 
we  see  that  brilliancy  is  admired,  whilst  plodding  in- 
dustry is  almost  sure  to  be  sneered  at.  Yet  which  of 
these  two  characters  would  St.  Paul  approve  ? Which 
shows  fidelity?  ddie  dull  mediocre  talent  faithfully 
used,  or  the  bright  talent  used  only  for  glitter  and  dis- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


59 


play?  St.  Paul,  in  the  verse  quoted,  crushes  vanity 
by  reminding  us  of  responsibility.  His  method  is  the 
true  one,  for  we  cannot  meet  vanity  by  denying  gifts. 
If  we  or  our  children  have  beauty  of  person,  have  tal- 
ents and  accomplishments,  it  is  in  vain  we  pretend  to 
depreciate,  or  to  shut  our  eyes  to  them. 

St.  Paul  did  not  do  this,  for  he  acknowledged  their 
worth.  He  said,  Covet  earnestly  the  best  gifts.” 
He  did  not  sneer  at  eloquence,  nor  contemn  learning  ; 
but  he  said.  These  are  your  responsibilities.  You  are 
a steward : you  have  received.  Beware  that  you  be 
found  faithful.  Woe  unto  you  if  accomplishments 
have  been  the  bait  for  admiration,  or  if  beauty  has 
left  the  mind  empty,  or  even  allured  others  to  evil. 
Woe,  if  the  gifts  and  manner,  that  have  made  you 
acceptable,  have  done  no  more.  In  truth,  this  inde- 
pendence of  God  is  man’s  fall.  Adam  tried  to  be  a 
Cause ; to  make  a Right ; to  be  separate  from  God ; to 
enjoy  without  God ; to  be  independent,  having  a will 
of  his  own : and  just  as  all  things  are  ours,  if  we  be 
Christ’s,  so,  if  we  be  not  Christ’s,  if  the  Giver  be 
ignored  in  our  enjoyments  and  our  work,  then  all 
things  are  not  ours : but  pleasures  are  enjoyed,  and 
gifts  used  in  the  way  of  robbery.  Stolen  pleasures  ; 
stolen  powers  ; stolen  honors  ; all  is  stolen  when  we 
glory  as  if  we  had  not  received.” 

H.  Warning  to  those  who  unduly  magnified  the 
office. 

There  were  men  who  prided  themselves  as  being 
ministers : successors  of  the  Apostles,  who  exercised 
lordship,  authority,  and  reigned  as  kings  over  the  con- 
gregations. 

The  Apostle  says,  “ Now  ye  are  full,  now  ye  are 
rich.”  Be  it  so.  How  comes  then  the  contrast  ? But 
God  hath  set  forth  us  the  Apostles  last,  as  it  were  ap- 
pointed to  death ; for  we  are  made  a spectacle  unto  the 
world,  and  to  angels,  and  to  men.”  Now  place  these 
two  verses  side  by  side,  and  think,  first  of  all,  of  these 
teachers — admired,  flattered,  and  loaded  with  presents. 


60 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTI.ES 


See  them  first  made  rich,  and  then  going  on  to  rule  as 
autocrats,  so  tliat  when  a Corintliian  entertained  liis 
minister,  he  entertained  liis  oracle,  his  infallible  guide, 
still  more,  his  very  religion. 

And  then,  after  having  well  considered  this  phrase, 
turn  to  contemplate  the  apostolic  life  as  painted  in  this 
last  verse.  If  the  one  be  an  Apostle,  what  is  the 
other  ? If  one  be  the  High  life,  the  Christian  life,  how 
can  the  other  be  a life  to  boast  of  ? 

Remark  here  the  irony:  Now  ye  are  full,  now  ye 
are  rich,  ye  have  reigned  as  kings  without  us.”  And 
again:  We  are  fools  for  Christ’s  sake,  but  ye  are 

wise  in  Christ : we  are  weak,  but  ye  are  strong : ye 
are  honorable,  but  we  are  despised.”  It  is  in  vain  we 
deny  these  words  are  ironical.  People  who  look  upon 
Christianity  as  a mere  meek,  passive,  strengthless,  ef- 
feminate thing,  must  needs  be  perplexed  with  passages 
such  as  these,  and  that  other  passage,  too,  in  Christ’s 
lips:  Full  well  ye  reject  the  commandment  of  God, 

that  ye  may  keep  your  own  tradition.”  Full  well ! ” 
How  terrible  the  irony  to  call  that  well  which  was 
most  The  truth  is,  that  in  Christ,  — the  perfect 
Human  Nature,  — the  manlier  and  more  vigorous  feel- 
ings and  emotions  did  not  undergo  excision.  Resent- 
ment, indignation,  these  are  to  be  guided,  controlled, 
not  cut  out.  True  it  is,  that  in  our  practice  they  are 
nearly  always  evil ; for  does  not  indignation  frequently 
become  spite,  and  resentment  turn  to  malice  ? Never- 
theless, they  are  both  integral  parts  of  human  nature. 
Our  character  is  composed  of  these  elements.  In  Christ 
they  existed,  how  strongly ! But  yet  when  he  used 
them  to  rebuke  living  men  they  are  changed  at  once. 
He  blighted  Pliarisaism  with  irony  and  terrible  invec- 
tive. But  to  the  actual,  living  Pharisee,  how  tenderly 
did  he  express  Himself ! Simon,  I have  somewhat 
to  say  unto  thee.”  Evil  is  detestable  ; and  the  man 
who  mixes  himself  with  it  is  so  far  obnoxious  to  our 
indignation.  Jbit  so  far  as  he  is  a man^  he  is  an  object 
o(‘  infinite  ])ity  and  tenderness. 

And  in  St.  Paul’s  irony  we  remark  somewhat  of  the 


TO  TPIE  CORINTHIANS. 


61 


same  characteristics.  It  becomes  even  sarcasm  if  you 
will,  but  there  is  no  shadow  of  a sneer  in  it.  He  Avho 
has  never  experienced  the  affectionate  bitterness  of 
love,  who  has  never  known  how  earnest  irony,  and 
passionate  sarcasm,  may  be  the  very  language  of  Love 
in  its  deepest,  saddest  moods,  is  utterly  incapable  of 
even  judging  this  passion.  And  remark  how  grace- 
fully it  turns  with  him  from  loving  though  angry  irony, 
to  loving  aspiration:  I would  to  God  ye  did  reign.” 
They  were  making  this  a time  for  triumph,  whereas  it 
was  the  time  for  suffering.  And  St.  Paul  says,  I 
would  the  time  for  reigning  were  come  indeed,  for  then 
we  should  be  blessed  together.  Ye  are  making  a noble 
time  of  it  with  this  playing  at  kings  ! Be  it  so.  Would 
to  God  that  it  were  not  an  anachronism  ! W ould  to 
God  that  the  time  for  triumph  Avere  come  indeed,  that 
these  factions  might  cease,  and  we  be  kings  together ! 

See  then,  here,  the  true  doctrine  of  the  apostolical 
succession.  The  apostolical  office  is  one  thing ; the 
apostolical  character,  which  includes  suffering,  is  quite 
another  thing ; often  they  are  totally  opposed. 

And  just  as  the  true  children  of  Abraham  were  not 
his  lineal  descendants,  but  the  inheritors  of  his  faith,  so 
the  true  apostolical  succession  consists  not  in  what  these 
men  pride  themselves  upon  — their  office,  their  theo- 
logical attainments,  their  ordination,  the  admiration  of 
their  flocks,  the  costly  testimonials  of  affection,  which 
had  made  them  rich  ; ” but  it  consists  rather  in  a life 
of  truth,  and  in  the  suffering  which  inevitably  come& 
as  the  result  of  being  true.  Let  bishops,  let  ministers, 
let  me  ever  remember  this. 

Now,  therefore,  we  can  understand  the  passage  with 
which  he  ends  : Wherefore,  I beseech  you,  be  ye  fol- 
lowers of  me.”  Only  do  not  misread  it.  It  might 
sound  as  if  Paul  were  inviting  them  to  become  his  fol- 
lowers, instead  of  following  Cephas  or  Apollos.  But 
that  would  be  to  forget  the  whole  argument.  To  say 
that,  would  have  been  to  have  fallen  into  the  very  error 
that  he  blamed,  and  to  have  opposed  and  contradicted 
his  own  depreciation  of  himself ; to  have  denied  every 


62 


LECTURES  ON  TH]*:  EPISTLES 


principle  he  had  been  establishing.  No:  you  have 
here  no  mere  partizan  trying  to  outbid  and  outvie 
others ; it  is  not  the  oratory  of  the  platform  com- 
mending one  sect  or  one  society  above  another. 

Paul  is  not  speaking  of  doctrine,  but  of  life,  lie 
says  that  the  life  he  had  just  described  was  the  one  for 
them  to  follow.  In  this  — Be  ye  followers  of  me,” 
he  declares  the  life  of  suffering,  of  hardship  in  the 
cause  of  duty,  to  be  higher  than  the  life  of  popularity 
and  self-indulgence.  He  says  that  the  dignity  of  a 
minister,  and  the  majesty  of  a man,  consist  not  in 
‘‘Most  Reverend,”  or  “Most  Noble,”  fixed  to  his 
name ; not  in  exempting  himself  from  the  common  lot, 
and  affecting  not  to  mix  with  mean  occupations  and 
persons  ; not  in  affecting  that  peculiar  spirituality  which 
is  above  human  joys,  and  human  pleasures,  and  human 
needs.  But  it  lies  in  this,  in  being  not  superhuman, 
but  human ; in  being  through  and  through  a man^ 
according  to  the  Divine  Idea : a man  whose  chief  privi- 
lege it  is  to  be  a minister  — that  is,  a servant,  a follower 
of  Him  who  “ came  not  to  be  ministered  unto,  but  to 
minister,  and  to  give  His  Life  a ransom  for  many.” 


TO  THE  COmi^THIANS. 


63 


LECTUEE  X. 

THE  CHRISTIAN  IDEA  OF  ABSOLUTION. 

August  1,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  ii.  10-11.  — “To  whom  ye  forgive  anything,  I forgive 
also  : for  if  I forgave  anything,  to  whom  I forgave  it,  f jr  your  sakes 
forgave  I it  in  the  person  of  Christ.  — Lest  Satan  should  get  an 
advantage  of  us  ; for  we  are  not  ignorant  of  his  devices.” 


In  order  that  we  may  more  fully  understand  the 
meaning  of  the  sentence  pronounced  upon  the  Corin- 
thian sinners  by  St.  Paul,  I have  determined  to  enter 
on  the  question  of  absolution  to-day,  and  have  therefore 
deviated  from  the  direct  line  of  exposition,  and  taken  a 
text  from  the  Second  Epistle,  in  which  the  principle  of 
Christian  absolution  is  fully  comprised. 

In  the  first  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  St.  Paul  refers 
to  a crime  which  had  brought  great  scandal  on  their 
Church  ; and  it  seems  that,  instead  of  being  shocked, 
the  Corinthians  rather  gloried  in  their  laxity,  or,  as  they 
called  it,  liberality. 

On  the  offender  the  Apostle  had  demanded  that  a 
severe  punishment  should  fall.  They  were  to  put 
away  from  themselves  that  wicked  person.”  But  in 
the  interval  which  had  elapsed  between  the  two  Epis- 
tles a great  change  had  taken  place.  The  Corinthians 
had  obeyed,  and  that  in  earnest.  Their  indignation 
and  zeal  had  been  thoroughly  roused,  and  the  terrible 
treatment  of  society  had  wrought  a deep  reniorse  in 
the  offenders  which  was  threatening  to  pass  into 
despair. 

In  this  Second  Epistle,  therefore,  he  requires  forgive- 
ness, he  reverses  his  mode  of  treatment  — ii.  6,  7.  In 
the  text  he  ratifies  that  forgiveness.  Here,  then,  we 


64 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


are  brought  face  to  face  with  the  fact  of  Cliristian  Ali- 
soliition.  For,  let  us  clearly  understand  : this  forgive- 
ness was  not  forgiveness  of  an  oifence  airainst  the 
Apostle,  or  against  any  man.  It  was  not  a debt,  nor 
an  insult  — it  was  a crime.  And  yet  thougli  a crime 
against  God,  Paul  says,  I forgive  it,  you  must  forgive 
it.”  He  did  not  say,  He  must  confess  to  God,  per- 
haps God  will  forgive.”  Here  there  is  evidently  a sin 
against  God  forgiven  by  man.  Here,  then,  is  the  fact 
of  Absolution. 

This  is  our  subject ; one  which  is  a battle-ground 
between  Romanists  and  Protestants.  I shall  not 
attempt  to  steer  adroitly  a middle  course  between  Ro- 
manism and  Protestantism,  the  first  asserting  an  absolv- 
ing power  in  the  priesthood,  the  second  denying  it  in 
every  shape  and  form  to  any  human  being.  I shall 
avoid  that  via  media  which,  to  timid  minds,  seems  safe 
and  judicious  because  not  going  into  extremes,  but  which 
does  yet,  like  all  weak  things,  manage  to  embrace  the 
evils  of  both,  and  the  good  of  neither.  But,  as  on 
other  occasions,  I shall  try  to  seize  that  deep  truth 
which  lies  at  the  root  of  both  views,  and  which  alone 
can  explain  the  difficulties  which  beset  the  question. 

First,  then  — False  conceptions  respecting  Abso- 
lution. 

Secondly.  The  Scripture  principle  on  which  it  rests. 

I.  The  false  conceptions. 

1.  The  first  would  be  a denial  in  toto  of  the  exist- 
ence of  such  a power  in  any  sense.  There  are,  and 
were,  men  wlio  might  have  objected  to  St.  Paul  as  the 
scribes  did  to  his  Lord  — Who  is  this  that  forgiveth 
sins  also  ? Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God  only  ? ” 
And  observe  there  was  much  truth  in  that  objection  — 
Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God  ? And  if  a man  may 
absolve  another  man,  will  not  sin  be  committed  easily 
and  carelessly  ? Will  not  the  salutary  effect  of  dread 
and  of  uncertainty  be  done  away  with  ? How  dan- 
gerous to  remove  the  apprehension  of  punishment ! 
How  fearful  to  send  any  one  to  a brother  man  instead 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


65 


of  to  God  alone  ! These  are  plausible  difficulties,  and 
in  great  part  true.  But  still  remember  how  Christ  re- 
plied to  that  objection.  He  performed  a miracle  to 
show  that  as  He  could  do  the  difficult  thing  — as  He 
could  say  with  power  — ‘‘  Arise,  and  take  up  thy  bed  and 
walk,”  so  He  could  do  the  more  difficult  — Thy  sins 
be  forgiven  thee.” 

Now  it  is  often  said  that  by  that  miracle  He  proved 
His  Godhead,  that  He  took  them  at  their  word.  ‘‘No 
one  can  forgive  sins  but  God.”  See,  then,  I can  for- 
give ; therefore  I am  God.  But  to  read  the  passage  so 
is  utterly  to  lose  the  meaning.  He  did  not  say  that  He 
forgave  as  God.  He  expressly  said  that  He  forgave  as 
man  — “ That  ye  may  know  that  the  Son  of  Man  hath 
power  on  earth  to  forgive  sins.”  He  says  nothing  about 
the  forgiveness  by  God  in  heaven.  All  He  speaks  of 
is  respecting  the  power  of  forgiveness  by  man  on  earth. 
But  whatever  we  may  make  of  that  passage,  our  text 
is  one  which  cannot  be  twisted.  We  say,  Christ  forgave 
as  the  Messiah,  not  as  Man  ; He  did  not  speak  of  a 
power  belonging  to  any  son  of  man,  but  to  the  Son  of 
Man.  Be  it  so : but  here  is  a passage  which  cannot 
be  so  gotover.  His  Apostle  Paul,  a son  of  man,  uses 
words  identical  with  His  : “To  whom  ye  forgive  any- 
thing, Iforgive.^'^  We  are  driven,  then,  to  the  conclu- 
sion, that  in  some  sense  or  other  human  beings  have  an 
absolving  power. 

2.  The  second  error  is,  that  which  would  confine  this 
power  to  the  Apostles.  “ St.  Paul  absolved  — yes  : but 
St.  Paul  was  inspired  ; he  could  read  hearts,  and  could 
absolve  because  he  knew  when  penitence  was  real ; but 
you  must  not  extend  that  to  men  now.”  In  reply  to 
this  observation,  take  two  facts.  1.  We  have  been 
denying  for  300  years  that  man’s  forgiveness  can  be  in 
any  sense  an  assurance  of  God’s.  We  have  fiercely, 
“ like  good  Protestants,”  opposed  any  absolving  power 
in  man.  What  has  been  our  success  ? Surely  it  has 
been  failure.  We  have  said,  “ Go  to  God,  He  forgives.” 
But  men  have  not  gained  rest  or  peace  by  this.  Out  of 
the  very  ranks  of  Protestantism  men  and  women  are 
6* 


66 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


crying  — ‘‘ Absolve  me  from  the  weight  of  sin  that  I 
cannot  bear  alone.”  Shall  we  then,  in  rigid  dogmatism, 
cruelly  say,  ‘‘  There  is  nothing  for  you  beyond  this  — 
Go  to  God,”  which  we  have  said  a thousand  times  ? or 
shall  we  say,  ‘‘It  is  time  to  pause  and  ask  ourselves 
what  real  truth  lies  at  the  bottom  of  this  irrepressible 
desire.  However  Rome  may  have  caricatured  the  truth, 
let  us  not  fear  to  search  it  out  ? ” 

Again.  Whether  you  will  or  not,  this  power  is  a 
fact ; for  thus  runs  Christ’s  commission  to  His  Church  : 
“ Whosesoever  sins  ye  remit,  they  are  remitted  unto 
them  ; and  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain,  they  are  re- 
tained.” Say,  if  you  will,  that  was  a peculiar  power, 
limited  to  the  Apostles.  Nevertheless,  the  fact  cannot 
be  controverted,  that  every  day  and  every  hour  Society 
— man,  exerts  this  power.  For  example:  There  are 
sins  after  committing  which  Society  permits  a return  ; 
there  are  others  in  which  Society  is  inexorable.  In 
military  life  cowardice  is  branded  with  irrevocable  in- 
famy. Among  women,  another  class  of  sins  admits  of 
no  return.  You  are  permitted  by  the  world  to  defraud 
your  tradesman  ; debts  may  be  “ honorably  contracted  ” 
which  there  is  no  ability  of  paying : but  if  a gambler 
shirks  his  “ debts  of  honor,”  he  has  to  fly  disgraced. 
And  the  results  of  this  are  clear.  A man  may  be,  in 
military  life,  dissipated,  which  is  morally  as  bad  as 
cowardice ; a woman  may  be  selfish  or  censorious,  or 
kill  by  bitter  words  ; and  yet  these  are  faults  not  made 
hopeless  by  Society  : they  leave  room  for  other  excel- 
lences — they  do  not  blight  character.  But  for  a cow- 
ard, or  a daughter  of  shame,”  once  fallen,  there  is  no 
return.  Down,  down,  and  deeper  yet  to  the  deeps  of 
infamy,  must  one  sink  on  whom  Society  has  set  its  black 
mark. 

Here  is  a fearful  exercise  of  power.  The  sins  which 
Society  has  bound  on  earth  are  bound  ; the  sins  which 
Society  has  loosed,  are  thereby  robbed  of  a ])ortion  of 
their  curse.  It  is  a power  often  wrongly  used,  but  still 
an  incontrovei'tible,  terrific  ])ower.  Even  from  un- 
worthy lips  these  words,  “ VVe  forgive,”  have  an  ab- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


67 


solving  power,  like  all  our  other  powers,  capable  of 
perversion  and  misuse.  And  such  a possibility  the 
Apostle  intimates  here  : lest  Satan  should  get  an  ad- 
vantage over  us.”  What  he  meant  by  this  expression 
is  told  in  the  seventh  verse.  For  he  well  knew  how 
the  sentence  of  Society  crushes.  He  knew  how  it 
drives,  first,  into  despondency,  and  how  despondency 
seeks  a temporary  refuge  in  superstition,  and  how,  that 
failing,  the  soul  passes  into  infidelity,  desperate  and 
open.  That  might  have  been  the  career  of  this  man. 
And  it  would  have  only  proved,  that  if  man  will  not 
recognize  or  allow  his  power  of  absolving,  he  cannot 
hinder  the  effects  and  working  of  his  power  of  binding 
sins  upon  the  character. 

3.  The  third  error  is,  that  which  monopolizes  Absolu- 
tion for  the  Priesthood.  The  Romanist  claims  this  most 
largely.  He  does  not  confine  it  to  the  Apostles.  He 
asserts  it  as  the  privilege  of  their  successors.  He  says 
that  the  power  to  bind  and  loose  belongs  to  the  Church 
now  ; by  a special  right  delegated  to  the  Priesthood 
only.  They  cry  out  for  the  power  of  the  keys.  The 
descendants  of  the  Apostles  have  power,  and  they 
alone,  to  bind  and  loose.  Whosesoever  sins  ye  remit, 
they  are  remitted  ; and  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain,  they 
are  retained.”  Well,  the  question  is.  In  what  sense, 
and  by  virtue  of  what  power,  the  Apostles  did  this  ? 
We  ir^ed  no  reply  beyond  the  text.  If  we  can  find  an 
instance  of  their  doing  this,  we  can  understand  the 
nature  of  the  privilege,  and  to  whom  it  extends.  Such 
an  instance  we  have  here.  The  Apostle  Paul,  in  ex- 
ercise of  the  right  so  delegated,  absolves  the  Corinthian 
sinner.  But  observe,  in  whatever  sense  he  claimed  the 
right  for  himself,  in  that  sense  he  also  claimed  it  for  the 
whole  Church.  He  forgave  because  they  did.  He 
asks  them  to  forgive.  He  says,  for  your  sakes  forgave 
I it.”  So  if  the  Apostle  Paul  absolved,  then  the  whole 
body  also  of  the  Corinthian  Church  absolved. 

H.  The  Principle  on  which  Absolution  rests. 

It  rests  on  the  mediatorial  character  of  Humanity. 


68 


LPXTUIIES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


‘‘  For  your  sakes  I forgave  m the  person  (L  e,^  in 
tlie  stead  of)  Christ.”  But  understand  tliat  the  word 
mediatorial  ” is  used  by  us  liere,  not  in  tlie  theologi- 
cal, but  the  natural,  popular,  and  simple  sense.  It 
means  that  which  is  conveyed  through  a medium.  A 
mediatorial  idea  is  that  through  the  medium  of  which 
we  apprehend  another  idea.  As,  for  example,  wlien 
the  inhabitant  of  the  torrid  zone  is  told  that  ice,  which 
he  has  never  seen,  resembles  glass,  glass  is  the  mediatorial 
idea  through  which  the  other  becomes  possible  to  him. 
A mediatorial  dispensation  is  one  which  through  the 
medium  of  things  earthly  conveys  conceptions  otherwise 
unintelligible,  as  that  of  the  soul’s  rest  in  God  through 
the  medium  of  the  Sabbath-day.  Now,  God  is  knowable 
by  us  only  through  the  medium  of  Humanity.  The 
idea  of  God  is  a mediatorial  idea.  The  Love  of  God 
would  be  uniiitellio;ible  unless  we  had  lovino;  feelino;s  of 
our  own,  unless  we  felt  the  love  of  men  to  us.  An 
orphan  who  had  never  seen  his  parents,  nor  known  any 
instance  of  the  parental  relation,  would  be  shutout  from 
the  conception  of  all  those  truths  which  are  conveyed  in 
the  announcement  — God  the  Father. 

Another  remark  in  passing.  Only  a man  can  be  the 
express  image  of  God’s  Person.  Only  through  a man 
can  there  be  a revelation  ; only  through  a perfect  man 
a perfect  revelation.  Here  is  the  principle  of  the  In- 
carnation. And  God’s  forgiveness  is  unintellio;ible, 
actually  incredible,  except  through  the  human  forgive- 
ness which  we  see.  And  if  you  were  to  imagine  the 
case  of  one  to  whom  human  beings  had,  with  no  one 
exception,  been  unrelenting,  then  to  that  one  I suppose 
God’s  forgiveness  would  be  not  only  incredible,  but  also 
inconceivable.  Or,  to  take  a less  extreme  case.  Sup- 
pose that  this  Corinthian  offender  had  been  met  on  every 
side  with  horror  and  detestation,  had  seen  nowhere  a 
pitying  eye,  in  every  street  had  been  shunned  and 
shuddered  at.  Is  it  not  certain,  by  the  laws  of  our 
Humanity,  that  tliis  judgment  of  Society  would  have 
seemed  to  liiin  a reflection  of  tlie  judgment  of  God,  an 
assurance  of  coming  wrath,  a knell  of  a deeper  doom? 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


69 


On  the  other  hand,  would  not  the  forgiveness  of  the 
Corinthian  society  have  caused  the  hope  of  God’s  for- 
giveness to  dawn  upon  his  heart,  made  it  seem  possible, 
and  by  degrees  probable,  actual,  certain  ? And  this  in 
exact  proportion,  just  as  the  men  who  so  forgave  were 
holy  men.  The  more  like  God  they  were,  the  more 
would  their  forgiveness  be  a type  and  assurance  of  God’s 
forgiveness.  And  also  this  conviction  would  become 
stronger  in  proportion  as  this  declaration  was  not  the 
isolated  act  of  one  individual,  which  might  seem  to  be 
personal  partiality,  but  the  act  of  many,  of  a society, 
a body,  — of  the  Church. 

Let  us  show  this  historically.  Throughout  the  ages, 
God  has  been  declaring  Himself,  in  His  character  of 
Absolver,  Liberator,  Redeemer.  For  the  History  of 
the  Past  has  not  been  that  of  Man  trying  to  express  his 
religious  instincts  in  institutions  and  priesthoods,  but 
of  God  uttering  Himself  and  His  Idea  through  Hu- 
manity. 

1.  Moses  is  called  a Mediator  in  the  Epistle  to  the 
Galatians.  How  was  this  ? God  sent  Moses  to  deliver 
his  people.  I am  come  to  deliver  them  out  of  the 
hand  of  the  Egyptians.”  ‘‘1  will  send  thee  unto  Pha- 
raoh.” And  Moses  understood  his  commission.  He 
slew  an  Egyptian,  and  he  supposed  that  they  would 
have  understood  that  he  was  their  liberator,  that  they 
would  have  seen  in  the  human  deliverer  the  Divine 
Arm.  God  was  revealing  Himself  through  Moses  as 
the  Avenger  and  Redeemer. 

2.  The  Judges.  — First  of  these  came  Joshua,  whose 
name,  originally  Oshea,  or  Saviour,  had  Jah  added  to 
it  to  make  this  clear,  that  he  was  a deliverer  in  whom 
was  to  be  seen  the  Unseen.  A Divine  Deliverer,” 
reminding  the  people  that  he  was  but  the  representative 
of  One  whose  prerogative  it  is  to  break  the  rod  of  the 
oppressor. 

8.  The  Prophets.  They  developed  another  kind  of 
deliverance,  founded  on  no  prescriptive  authority,  but 
only  on  the  authority  of  Truth.  They  stood  up  against 
king  and  priest.  They  witnessed  against  kingcraft. 


70 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EEISTEES 


priestcraft,  against  false  social  maxims,  against  super- 
stitions, against  all  that  was  enslaving  the  Jewish  soul. 
And  how  did  they  effect  this  deliverance  ? They  pro- 
claimed God  as  He  is.  Their  invariable  preface  was 
this,  Thus  saith  the  Lord.”  They  fell  back  on  deep 
first  principles.  They  said,  that  to  do  justice,  to  love 
mercy,  to  walk  humbly  with  God,”  was  better  than 
praying,  and  fasting,  and  sacrifice.  They  revealed  and 
declared  the  true  Character  of  God,  which  had  become 
incredible  to  the  people  through  the  false  glosses  it  had 
received.  And  so  the  Prophet  also  was  the  deliverer  of 
his  people,  loosing  them  from,  not  slavery,  nor  political 
oppression,  but  a worse  bondage,  the  bondage  which 
comes  from  ecclesiastical  and  civil  institutions  when  they 
have  ceased  to  be  real.  And  thus  did  they  once  more 
exhibit  to  the  world  the  absolving  power  of  Humanity, 
when  it  represents  accurately  the  Divine  Mind  and 
Character. 

One  step  further.  There  is  a slavery  worse  than  all 
these ; the  power  by  which  the  soul,  through  ignorance 
of  God,  is  bound  in  sin.  Now  consider  what  the 
Scribes  had  been  doing ; they  had  reduced  the  teaching 
about  sin  to  a science ; they  had  defined  the  nature  and 
degrees  of  sins  ; they  had  priced  each  sin,  named  the 
particular  penance  and  cost  at  which  it  could  be  toler- 
ated. And  thus  they  had  represented  God  as  One 
who,  for  a certain  consideration,  might  be  induced  to 
sell  forgiveness,  might  be  bribed  to  change  His  will, 
and  forgive  those  whom  He  had  intended  to  condemn. 
Therefore  was  One  manifested  who  represented  the 
Divine  Character  without  flaw ; in  whom  the  media- 
torial idea  was  perfect,  in  whom  Humanity  was  the 
exact  pattern  and  type  of  Deity,  in  whom  God  ap- 
peared as  the  Deliverer  in  the  highest  sense,  where 
every  miracle  manifested  the  Power  to  loose,  and  every 
tender  word  the  Will  to  forgive  ; who  established  the 
true  relation  between  God  and  man,  as  being  not 
that  between  a judge  and  a culprit,  but  as  between  a 
Father  and  a son.  For  once  the  Love  of  Man  was 
identical  with  the  Love  of  God  ; for  once  Human  for- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


71 


giveness  was  exactly  commensurate  with  the  Divine 
forgiveness  : therefore  is  He  the  one  Absolver  of  the 
Kace  ; therefore  has  He,  because  the  Son  of  Man, 
power  on  earth  to  forgive  sins;”  and,  therefore, 
every  absolver,  so  far  as  he  would  free  consciences  and 
characters  from  sins,  must  draw  his  power  out  of  that 
same  Humanity.  He  can  free  only  so  far  as  he  repre- 
sents it,  or  as  St.  Paul  expresses  it  here,  “ forgive  in 
the  person  of  Christ ; ” that  is,  representatively,  for 
person  ” means  the  character  sustained  on  a stage, 
which  represents,  or  is  a medium  through  which  the 
one  represented  is  conceived. 

In  conclusion,  let  us  make  two  applications. 

1.  From  the  fact  that  the  whole  Corinthian  Church 
absolved,  learn  that  the  power  of  absolution  belongs  to 
every  man  as  man  — as  made  in  the  image  of  God.” 
It  belongs  in  the  highest  degree  to  the  man  who  most 
truly  retiects  that  image,  who  most  truly  stands  in  the 
person  of  Christ.  Are  you  a rigid  Protestant,  stithy 
content  with  a miserable  negative,  sturdily  satisfied  to 
reiterate  forever,  Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God 
only?”  Well,  remember  first,  that  maxim  of  which 
you  are  so  proud  was  used  by  the  Scribes  before  you  ; 
a superficial  half-truth  it  is,  in  its  depths  false.  Next 
remember,  that,  perhaps  every  act  of  yours  is  proving 
the  case  against  you.  If  you  will  not  do  by  Love  the 
absolving  work  of  the  Corinthian  Church,  you  may  by 
severity  do  the  terrible,  condemning  work  of  the  same 
Church  in  darkening  the  light  of  hope  and  of  God  in 
the  souls  of  the  erring.  If  you  represent  God  as  more 
severe  under  the  Christian  than  under  the  Jewish  dis- 
pensation, or  if  you  represent  Him  as  the  Father  of  a 
certain  section  in  consideration  of  their  faith,  their 
church-membership,  their  baptism,  or  in  consideration 
of  anything^  except  His  own  universal  Love  ; or,  if 
chiming  in  with  the  false  maxims  of  society,  you  pass 
proudly  by  the  sinful  and  the  wandering  ; then,  so  far 
as  you  have  darkened  the  hope  of  any  soul,  though  you 
may  be  saying  loudly,  None  can  forgive  but  God  ; ” 
yet  with  a voice  louder  still,  you  will  have  demonstrated 


72 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


that  even  if  you  wili  disclaim  your  power  to  loose,  you 
cannot  part  with  your  awful  power  to  hind. 

2.  Inasmuch  as  St.  Paul  absolved,  let  us  learn  the 
true  principle  of  ministerial  absolution.  Humanity  is 
the  representative  of  Deity.  Tlie  Church  is  the  repre- 
sentative of  Humanity,  the  ideal  of  Humanity.  The 
minister  is  the  representative  of  the  Church.  When, 
therefore,  the  minister  reads  the  absolution,  he  declares 
a Fact.  It  does  not  depend  on  his  character  or  his 
will.  It  is  a true  voice  of  man  on  earth  echoing  the 
Voice  of  God  in  heaven.  But  if  the  minister  forgets 
his  representative  character,  if  he  forgets  that  it  is  sim- 
ply in  the  name  of  Humanity  and  God,  in  the  person 
of  Christ,”  if  by  any  mysterious  language  or  priestly 
artifices  he  fixes  men’s  attention  on  himself,  or  his  office, 
as  containing  in  it  a supernatural  power  not  shared  by 
other  men  ; then,  just  so  far,  he  does  not  absolve  or 
free  the  soul  by  declaring  God.  Pie  binds  it  again  by 
perplexed  and  awe-engendering  falsehood,  and  so  far, 
is  no  priest  at  all ; he  has  forfeited  the  priestly  power 
of  Christian  Humanity,  and  claimed  instead  the  spuri- 
ous power  of  the  priesthood  of  Superstition. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


73 


LECTURE  XI. 

November  30,  1851, 

1 Corinthians,  v.  1-13. — “It  is  reported  commonly  that  there  is 
fornication  among  you,  and  such  fornication  as  is  not  so  much  as 
named  among  the  Gentiles,  that  one  should  have  his  father’s  wife.  — 
And  ye  are  puffed  up,  and  have  not  rather  mourned,  that  he  that 
hath  done  this  deed  might  be  taken  away  from  among  you.  — For  I 
verily,  as  absent  in  body,  but  present  in  spirit,  have  judged  already, 
as  though  I were  present,  concerning  him  that  hath  so  done  this 
deed,  — In  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  when  ye  are  gath- 
ered together,  and  my  spirit,  with  the  power  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  — To  deliver  such  an  one  unto  Satan  for  the  destruction  of 
the  flesh,  that  the  spirit  may  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus. 

— Your  glorifying  is  not  good.  Know  ye  not  that  a little  leaven 
leaveneth  the  whole  lump? — Purge  out  therefore  the  old  leaven, 
that  ye  may  be  a new  lump,  as  ye  are  unleavened.  For  even  Christ 
our  passover  is  sacrificed  for  us  : — Therefore  let  us  keep  the  feast,  not 
with  the  old  leaven,  neither  with  the  leaven  of  malice  and  wicked- 
ness; but  with  the  unleavened  bread  of  sincerity  and  truth. — I 
wrote  unto  you  in  an  epistle  not  to  company  with  fornicators  : — Yet 
not  altogether  with  the  fornicators  of  this  world,  or  with  the  covet- 
ous, or  extortioners,  or  with  idolaters;  for  then  must  ye  needs  go 
out  of  the  world.  — But  now  I have  written  unto  you  not  to  keep 
company,  if  any  man  that  is  called  a brother  be  a fornicator,  or 
covetous,  or  an  idolater,  or  a railer,  or  a drunkard,  or  an  extortioner; 
with  such  an  one  no  not  to  eat.  — For  what  have  I to  do  to  judge 
them  also  that  are  without  ? do  not  ye  judge  them  that  are  within  ? 

— But  them  that  are  without  God  judgeth.  Therefore  put  away 
from  among  yourselves  that  wicked  person.” 

There  is  but.  one  subject  in  this  chapter  on  which  I 
shall  address  you'  to-day  — I mean  St.  Paul’s  judg- 
ment on  the  scandal  which  had  befallen  the  Corinthian 
Church.  The  same  case  was  treated  before  you  last 
Sunday.  I took  the  Absolution  first,  that  we  might 
be  prepared  for  a sentence  of  great  severity,  and  that 
we  should  not  think  that  sentence  was  final.  The 
whole  of  this  chapter  is  an  eloquent,  earnest  appeal 
for  judgment  on  the  offender. 

St.  Paul’s  sentence  was  excommunication.  I have 
judged,”  he  says,  to  deliver  such  an  one  unto  Satan.” 
This  is  the  form  of  words  used  in  excommunication. 

7 


74 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


The  presiding  bishop  used  to  say,  formally,  I deliver 
such  an  one  unto  Satan.”  So  that,  in  fact,  St.  Paul, 
when  he  said  this,  meant  — My  sentence  is,  Let  him 
be  excommunicated.” 

Our  subject,  then,  is  Ecclesiastical  Excommunication, 
or  rather  the  grounds  upon  which  human^  punishment 
rests.  The  first  ground  on  which  it  rests  is  a re])re- 
sentative  one.  In  the  name  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  when  ye  are  gathered  together,  and  my  s})irit 
with  the  power  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.”  There  is 
used  here,  then,  precisely  the  same  formula  as  that  in 
Absolution.  ‘‘  For  your  sakes  forgave  I it,  in  the 
person  of  Christ.”  In  this  place,  person  ” is  a dra- 
matic word.  It  means  the  character  sustained  on  the 
stage  by  one  who  represents  another.  So  then,  ab- 
solving in  the  person  of  Christ,”  excommunicating 
in  the  name  of  Christ,”  implied  that  Paul  did  both  in 
a representative  capacity.  Remember,  then,  man  is 
the  image  of  God,  man  is  the  medium  through  which 
God’s  absolution  and  God’s  punishment  are  given  and 
inflicted.  Man  is  the  mediator,  because  he  represents 
God. 

If  man,  then,  were  a perfect  image  of  God,  his 
forgiveness  and  his  condemnation  would  be  a perfect 
echo  of  God’s.  But  in  respect  of  his  partaking  of  a 
fallen  nature,  his  acts,  in  this  sense,  are  necessarily  im- 
perfect. There  is  but  One,  He  in  whom  Humanity  was 
completely  restored  to  the  Divine  Image,  whose  for- 
giveness and  condemnation  are  exactly  commensurate 
with  God’s.  Nevertheless,  the  Church  here  is  the 
representative  of  Humanity,  of  that  ideal  man  which 
Christ  realized,  and  hence,  in  a representative  capacity, 
it  condemns  and  forgives. 

Again,  as  such,  that  is,  as  representative,  human 
])unishment  is  expressive  of  Divine  indignation.  Strong 
words  are  these,  To  deliver  nnto  Satan.”  Strong, 
too,  are  those  — Yea,  what  indignation,  yea,  what 
fear,  yea,  what  vehement  desire,  yea,  what  zeal,  yea, 
what  revenge  ! ” And  St.  Paul  a])proved  that  feeling. 
Now,  I (tan not  explain  such  words  away.  I cannot 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


r 

say  the  wrath  of  God  is  a figurative  expression,  nor 
dare  I say  the  vengeance  of  the  Law  is  Jigaraiive^  for 
it  is  a mistake  to  suppose  that  punishment  is  only  to 
reform  and  warn.  There  is,  unquestionably,  another 
truth  connected  with  it ; it  is  the  expression  on  earth 
of  God’s  indignation  in  Heaven  against  sin.  St.  Paul 
says  of  the  Civil  Magistrate,  ^^For  he  is  the  Minister  of 
God,  a revenger  to  execute  wrath  upon  him  that  doeth 
evil.” 

Doubtless,  our  human  passions  mingle  with  that 
word  vengeance.”  It  is  hard  to  use  it,  and  not  con- 
ceive of  something  vindictive  and  passionate.  Yet  the 
Bible  uses  it,  and  when  our  hearts  are  sound  and 
healthy,  and  our  view  of  moral  evil  not  morbid  and 
sentimental,  we  feel  it  too.  We  feel  that  the  anger  of 
God  is  a reality,  an  awful  reality,  and  that  we  dare  not 
substitute  any  other  expression.  There  cannot  be  such 
a thing  as  perfect  hatred  of  wrong,  and  unmixed  love 
of  the  wron^-doer.  He  who  has  done  wrono;  has 
identified  himself  with  wrong,  and  so  far  is  an  object 
of  indignation.  This,  of  course,  in  infinite  degrees. 

In  our  own  day  we  are  accustomed  to  use  strange 
weak  words  concerning  sin  and  crime  : we  say,  when 
a man  does  wrong,  that  he  has  mistaken  the  way  to 
happiness,  and  that  if  a correct  notion  of  real  hap- 
piness could  be  given  to  men,  crime  would  cease.  We 
look  on  sin  as  residing,  not  in  a guilty  will,  but  in  a 
mistaken  understanding.  Thus,  the  Corinthians  looked 
on  at  this  deed  of  iniquity,  and  felt  no  indignation. 
They  had  some  soft,  feeble  way  of  talking  about  it. 
They  called  it  ^‘mental  disease,”  error,”  mistake  of 
judgment,”  irresistible  passion,”  or  I know  not  what. 

St.  Paul  did  feel  indignation ; and  which  was  the 
higher  nature,  think  you  ? If  St.  Paul  had  not  been 
indignant,  could  he  have  been  the  man  he  was  ? And 
this  is  what  we  should  feel ; this  it  is  which,  firmly 
seated  in  our  hearts,  would  correct  our  lax  ways  of 
viewing  injustice,  and  our  lax  account  of  sin. 

Observe,  the  indignation  of  Society  is  properly  rep- 
resentative of  the  indignation  of  God.  I tried  last 


76 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Sunday*  to  show  how  the  absolution  of  Society  looses 
a man  from  the  weight  of  sin,  by  representing  and 
making  credible  God’s  forgiveness  — how  it  opens  him 
to  hope  and  the  path  to  a new  life.  Now,  similarly, 
see  how  the  anger  of  Society  represents  and  makes 
credible  God’s  Avrath.  So  long  as  the  Corinthians 
petted  this  sinner,  conscience  slumbered ; but  when 
the  voice  of  men  was  raised  in  condemnation,  and  he 
felt  himself  everywhere  shunned,  conscience  began  to 
do  its  dreadful  work,  and  then  their  anger  became  a 
type  of  coming  doom.  Remember,  therefore,  there  is 
a real  power  lodged  in  Humanity  to  bind  as  Avell  as  to 
loose  ; and  remember,  that  Man,  God’s  representative, 
may  exercise  this  fearful  power  Avrongly,  too  long,  and 
too  severely  in  venial  faults,  yet  there  is  still  a power, 
a terrible  human  poAver,  which  may  make  outcasts,  and 
drive  men  to  infamy  and  ruin.  Whosesoever  sins  Ave 
bind  on  earth,  they  are  bound. 

Only,  therefore,  so  far  as  man  is  Christ-like,  can  he 
exercise  this  poAver  in  an  entirely  true  and  perfect  man- 
ner. The  world’s  excommunication  or  banishment  is 
almost  ahvays  unjust,  and  that  of  the  nominal  Church 
more  or  less  so. 

The  second  ground  on  Avhich  human  punishment  rests 
is  the  reformation  of  the  offender.  That  the  spirit 
may  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.” 

Of  all  the  grounds  alleged  for  punishment,  that  of 

an  example  to  others  ” is  the  most  heartless  and  the 
most  unchristian.  In  Scripture  I read  of  two  principal 
objects  of  punishment : — first,  that  which  has  been 
given  already  — punishment  as  an  expression  of  right- 
eous indignation  ; the  other,  the  amelioration  of  the 
sinner,  as  is  expressed  in  the  above  verse.  And  here 
the  peculiarly  merciful  character  of  Christianity  comes 
forth  : the  Church  was  never  to  give  over  the  hope  of 
recovering  tlie  fallen.  Punishment  then,  here,  is  reme- 
dial. If  Paul  punished,  it  was  that  the  spirit  might 
be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.”  And  hence 

* This  subject  is  also  treated  of  iu  a Sermon  on  “ Absolution,’* 
which  is  published  in  tiie  iliiid  volume  of  Mr.  Robertson’s  Sermons. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


77 


(putting  capital  punishment  out  of  the  present  question) 
to  shut  the  door  of  repentance  upon  any  sin,  to  make 
outcasts  for  ever,  and  thus  to  produce  despair^  is  con- 
trary to  the  idea  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  and  alien  from 
His  Spirit.  And  so  far  as  Society  does  that  now,  it  is 
not  Christianized,  for  Christianity  never  sacrifices,  as  the 
world-system  does,  the  individual  to  the  Soclet}^.  Chris- 
tianity has  brought  out  strongly  the  worth  of  the  single 
soul.  Let  us  not,  however,  in  treating  of  this  subject, 
overstate  the  matter,  for  it  would  be  too  much  to  say 
that  example  is  never  a part  of  the  object  of  punishment. 
Perhaps  of  the  highest  Christian  idea  of  punishment  it 
is  not.  Yet  in  societies,  where,  as  the  spirit  of  the  old 
world  still  lingers,  Christianity  can  never  be  fully  carried 
out,  it  must  be  tolerated.  For  example,  the  army  is  a 
society  which  is  incompatible  with  the  existence  of 
Christianity  in  its  perfection.  And  here,  too,  we  learn 
to  look  with  an  understanding  eye  at  what  else  we  must 
blame.  When  we  censure  the  sanguinary  laws  of  the 
past,  we  must  remember  that  they  did  their  work. 
And  even  now,  the  severe  judgments  and  animadver- 
sions of  Society  have  their  use.  Christian  they  are  not, 
worthy  of  a Society  calling  itself  Christian  they  are  not ; 
but  as  the  system  of  a Society  only  half  Christian,  such 
as  ours,  they  have  their  expediency.  Individuals  are 
sacrificed,  but  Society  is  kept  comparatively  pure,  for 
many  are  deterred  from  wrong-doing  by  fear,  who 
would  be  deterred  by  no  other  motive. 

The  third  ground  is  the  contagious  character  of  evil. 
“ A little  leaven  leaveneththe  whole  lump.”  Observe, 
the  evil  was  not  a matter  of  example,  but  contagion. 
Scull  an  one  as  this  incestuous  man  — wicked,  impenitent, 
and  unpunished  — would  infect  the  rest  of  the  Church. 
Who  does  not  know  how  the  tone  of  evil  has  communi- 
cated itself?  Worldly  minds,  irreverent  minds,  licen- 
tious minds,  leaven  Society.  You  cannot  be  long  with 
persons  who  by  innuendo,  double  meaning,  or  lax  lan- 
guage, show  an  acquaintance  with  evil,  without  feeling 
in  some  degree  assimilated  to  them,  nor  can  you  easily 
retain  enthusiasm  for  right  amongst  those  who  detract 


78 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


and  scoff  at  goodness.  None  but  Christ  could  remain 
with  the  impenitent  and  be  untainted ; and  even  where 
repentance  has  been  deeply  felt,  fixmiliarity  with  some 
kinds  of  vice  unfits  a man  for  association  with  his  fellow- 
men.  A penitent  man  should  be  forgiven ; but  unless 
you  can  insure  the  removal  of  the  mental  taint,  it  does 
not  follow  that  he  is  fit  for  safe  intimacy.  Perhaps, 
never  in  this  world  again  ; and  it  may  be  part  of  his 
terrible  discipline  here,  which  we  would  fain  hope  is 
remedial,  not  penal,  to  retain  the  stamp  of  past  guilt  upon 
his  character,  causing  him  to  be  avoided,  though  for- 
given. 

The  fourth  ground  was.  Because  to  permit  this 
would  be  to  contradict  the  true  idea  of  the  Church  of 
Christ,  Ye  are  unleavened.”  This  is  the  idea  of  the 
Church  of  Christ,  a body  unleavened  with  evil,  and  St. 
Paul  uses  a metaphor  taken  from  the  Paschal  Feast. 
It  was  eaten  with  unleavened  bread,  and  every  Jewish 
family  scrupulously  removed  every  crumb  of  leaven 
from  the  house  before  it  began.  In  like  manner,  as  that 
feast  was  eaten  with  no  remnant  of  the  old  leaven,  so  is 
our  Christian  jubilee  to  be  kept.  All  the  old  life  has 
passed  away.  We  may  say,  as  Paul  said  of  the  Cor- 
inthians, Ye  are  unleavened.”  A new  start,  as  it 
were,  has  been  given  to  you  in  Christ ; you  may  begin 
afresh  for  life.  Here,  then,  is  the  true  conception  of 
the  Church  : regenerated  Humanity,  new  life  without 
the  leaven  of  old  evil. 

Let  us  distinguish,  however,  between  the  Church 
visible  and  invisible.  The  Church  invisible  is  ^Hhe 
general  assembly  and  Church  of  the  First-born  ” spoken 
of  in  Hebrews,  xii.  v.  23.  It  is  that  Idea  of  Humanity 
which  exists  in  the  Mind  of  God  : such  as  Paul  de- 
scribed the  Church  at  Ephesus  ; such  as  no  Church 
ever  really  was  ; such  as  only  Christ  of  men  has  ever 
been  ; but  such  as  every  Church  is  potentially  and  con- 
ceivably.* But  the  Church  visible  is  the  actual  men 
professing  Christ,  who  exist  in  this  ago,  or  in  that : and 


Sec  Mr.  Robertson's  Sermon  on  The  Victory  of  Faith/’  Vol.  III. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIAIS’S. 


79 


the  Church  visible  exists,  to  represent,  and  at  last  to 
realize,  the  Church  invisible.  In  the  first  of  these 
senses,  the  Apostle  describes  the  Corinthian  Church  as 

unleavened ; ’’  i.  e.  he  says,  that  is  the  idea  of  your  ex- 
istence. In  the  second  sense,  he  describes  them  as  they 
are,  puffed  up,  contentious,  carnal,  walking  as  men.” 

Now,  for  want  of  keeping  these  two  things  distinct, 
two  grave  errors  may  be  committed. 

1.  Undue  severity  in  the  treatment  of  the  lapsed. 

2.  Wrong  purism  in  the  matter  of  association  with 
the  world,  its  people,  its  business,  and  its  amusements. 

Into  the  first  of  these  the  Corinthians  afterwards  were 
tempted  to  fall,  refusing  reconciliation  with  the  sinner. 
Into  this  the  Church  did  fall,  for  a period,  in  the  third 
century,  when  Novatian,  laying  down  the  axiom  that 
the  actual  state  of  the  Church  ought  to  correspond  with 
its  ideal  — in  fact,  declaring  that  the  Idea  of  the  Church 
was  its  actual  state  — very  consistently  with  this  false 
definition,  demanded  the  non-restoration  of  all  who  had 
ever  lapsed. 

But  the  attempt  to  make  the  Church  entirely  pure 
must  fail : it  is  to  be  left  to  a higher  tribunal.  Such 
an  attempt  ever  has  failed.  The  parable  of  the  wheat 
and  the  tares  makes  it  manifest  that  we  cannot  eradi- 
cate evil  from  the  Church  without  the  danger  of  de- 
stroying good  with  it.  Only,  as  a Church  visible  she 
must  separate  from  her  all  visible  evil,  she  must  sever 
from  herself  all  such  foreign  elements  as  bear  unmis- 
takable marks  of  their  alien  birth.  She  is  not  the 
Church  invisible,  but  she  represents  it.  Her  purity 
must  be  visible  purity,  not  ideal : representative,  not 
perfect. 

The  second  error  was  a misconception,  into  which, 
from  the  Apostle’s  own  words,  it  was  easy  to  fall;  an 
over  rigorous  purism,  or  puritanism. 

The  Corinthians  were  to  separate  from  the  immoral ; 
but  in  a world  where  all  were  immoral,  how  was  this 
practicable  ? Should  they  buy  no  meat  because  the 
seller  was  a heathen  ? nor  accept  an  invitation  from 
him,  nor  transact  business  with  him,  because  he  was  an 
idolater  ? 


80 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Against  an  extension  of  this  principle  he  sedulously 
guards  himself,  in  the  ninth  and  tenth  verses.  Paul 
says  to  them,  Yon  are  not  to  go  out  of  the  world, 
only  take  care  that  you  do  not  recognize  such  sinners 
by  associating  with  them  as  hr  others^  or  as  fulfilling,  in 
any  degree,  the  Christian  idea.  Indeed,  afterwards, 
he  tells  them  they  were  free  to  ])urchase  meat  which 
had  been  used  in  heathen  sacrifices,  and  he  contem- 
plates the  possibility  of  their  accepting  invitations  to 
heathen  entertainments. 

Lastly,  let  us  apply  the  principles  have  now  gain- 
ed to  practical  life  as  at  present  existing : let  us  see 
the  dangerous  results  of  that  exclusiveness  which  affects 
the  society  of  the  religious  only. 

The  first  result  that  follows  is  the  habit  of  judging. 
For,  if  we  only  associate  with  those  whom  we  think 
religious,  we  must  decide  who  are  religious,  and  this 
becomes  a habit.  Now,  for  this  judgment,  we  have 
absolutely  no  materials.  And  the  life  of  Christ,  at 
least,  should  teach  us  that  the  so-called  religious  party 
are  not  always  God’s  religious  ones.  The  publicans 
and  the  harlots  went  into  the  kingdom  of  Heaven  be- 
fore the  Pharisees. 

And  the  second  result  is  censoriousness  ; for  we  must 
judge  who  are  not  religious,  and  then  the  door  is  opened 
for  the  slander,  and  the  gossip,  and  the  cruel  harshness, 
which  make  religious  cliques  worse  even  than  worldly 
ones. 

And  the  third  result  is  spiritual  pride  ; for  we  must 
judge  ourselves^  and  so  say  to  others,  I am  holier 
than  thou.”  And  then  we  fall  into  the  very  fault  of 
these  Corinthians,  Avho  were  rejoicing,  not  that  they 
were  Christians,  but  Christians  of  a peculiar  sort,  dis- 
ciples of  Paul,  or  Apollos,  or  Cephas.  Had  they  been 
contented  to  feel  that  they  had  a common  salvation  — 
that  they  had  been  named  by  the  same  Name,  and 
redeemed  by  the  same  SacriHce  — vanity  had  been  im- 
j)ossil)le,  for  we  are  only  vain  of  that  wherein  we  differ 
from  others.  So  we,  too  often  rejoicing  in  thin  dis- 
tinctions, “ they,”  — and  we,”  fall  into  that  sin,  almost 
the  most  hopeless  of  all  sins,  — spiritual  pride. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


81 


LECTURE  XII. 

December  7,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  yI.  1-12.  — “Dare  any  of  you,  having  a matter 
against  another,  go  to  law  before  the  unjust,  and  not  before  the 
saints?  — Do  ye  not  know  that  the  saints  shall  judge  the  world? 
and  if  the  world  shall  be  judged  by  you,  are  ye  unworthy  to  judge 
the  smallest  matters  ? — Know  ye  not  that  we  shall  judge  angels  ? 
how  much  more  things  that  pertain  to  this  life  ? — If  then  ye  have 
judgments  of  things  pertaining  to  this  life,  set  them  to  judge  who 
are  least  esteemed  in  the  church.  — I speak  to  your  shame.  Is 
it  so,  that  there  is  not  a wise  man  among  you  ? no,  not  one  that 
shall  be  able  to  judge  between  his  brethren  ? — But  brother  goeth 
to  law  with  brother,  and  that  before  the  unbelievers.  — Now  there- 
fore there  is  utterly  a fault  among  you,  because  ye  go  to  law  one 
with  another.  Why  do  ye  not  rather  take  wrong  ? why  do  ye  not 
rather  suffer  yourselves  to  be  defrauded  ? — Kay,  ye  do  wrong,  and 
defraud,  and  that  your  brethren. — Know  ye  not  that  the  unrighteous 
shall  not  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God  ? Be  not  deceived  : neither 
fornicators,  nor  idolaters,  nor  adulterers,  nor  effeminate,  nor  abusers 
of  themselves  with  mankind,  — Nor  thieves,  nor  covetous,  nor 
drunkards,  nor  revilers,  nor  extortioners,  shall  inherit  the  king- 
dom of  God.  — And  such  were  some  of  you  : but  ye  are  washed, 
but  ye  are  sanctified,  but  ye  are  justified  in  the  name  of  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  by  the  Spirit  of  our  God.” 

This  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians  differs  from  the  other 
Epistles  of  St.  Paul  in  this,  that  instead  of  being  one 
consecutive  argument  on  connected  subjects,  it  deals 
with  a large  variety  of  isolated  questions  which  the 
Corinthian  Church  had  put  to  him  on  some  previous 
occasion.  Hence  this  Epistle  is  one  of  Christian  Casu- 
istry, or  the  application  of  Christian  principles  to  the 
various  circumstances  and  cases  of  conscience  which 
arise  continually  in  the  daily  life  of  a highly  civilized, 
and  highly  artificial  community. 

This  chapter,  the  sixth,  contains  the  Apostle’s  judg- 
ment on  two  such  questions. 

I.  The  manner  of  deciding  Christian  quarrels. 


82 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


II.  The  character  of  Cliristian  liberty,  what  is  meant 
by  it,  and  how  it  is  limited. 

Of  the  first  of  these  only  I shall  speak  to-day,  and 
the  subject  ranges  from  the  first  to  the  twelfth  verse. 

I.  The  manner  of  deciding  Christian  quarrels. 

It  appears  from  this  account  that  questions  arose 
amon^  the  Corinthian  Christians  which  needed  litie-a- 
tion  : questions  of  wrongs  done  to  persons  or  to  prop- 
erty. Of  the  former  of  these  we  have  already  met 
one  in  the  fifth  chapter.  These  wrongs  they  carried 
to  the  heathen  courts  of  judicature  for  redress.  For 
this  the  Apostle  reproves  them  severely,  and  he  assigns 
two  reasons  for  his  rebuke  : — 

1.  He  desired  a power  in  the  Church  to  decide  such 
difficulties  for  itself.  These  questions  should  be  tried 
before  the  saints,”  that  is,  by  Church  judicature  ; 
and  to  support  this  opinion,  he  reminds  them  that  ‘Hhe 
saints  shall  judge  the  world.”  Let  us  understand  this 
phrase.  Putting  aside  all  speculations,  we  are  all 
agreed  on  this,  and  we  are  drawn  to  a recollection  of  it 
by  this  Advent  time,  that  this  Earth  shall  be  one  day 
a Kingdom  of  God.  We  cannot  tell  how  it  may  be 
consummated,  whether,  as  some  think,  by  a Miraculous 
and  Personal  Coming,  or,  as  others  hold,  by  the  slow 
evolving,  as  ages  pass,  of  Christian  principles  ; by  the 
gradual  development  of  the  mustard  seed  into  a tree, 
and  of  the  leaven  throughout  the  meal.  But  this,  un- 
questionably, is  true.  Human  society  shall  be  thoroughly 
christianized.  The  kingdoms  of  this  world  shall 
become  the  kingdoms  of  the  Lord  and  of  His  Christ.” 
Legislation  shall  be  Christian  legislation.  Law  shall 
not  then  be  a ditterent  tiling  from  equity.  And  more, 
a time  is  coming  when  statute  law  shall  cease,  and 
self-government  and  self-control  shall  supersede  all 
outwai’d  or  arbitraiy  law.  That  will  be  the  reign  of 
the  saints. 

J^et  me  then  pause  and  examine  the  principles,  as 
they  are  declared  in  Scripture,  of  this  Kingdom  which 
is  to  be. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


83 


The  saints  shall  judge.”  The  first  principle,  then, 
of  the  kingdom  is  the  Supremacy  of  Goodness.  It  is 
by  holiness  that  the  Earth  shall  be  governed  hereafter. 
For  the  word  judge”  in  this  verse  is  used  in  the  same 
sense  as  it  is  used  of  Deborah  and  Barak,  and  others 
who  judged  or  ruled  Israel.  So  here  it  does  not  mean 
that  the  saints  shall  be  assessors  with  Christ  at  the 
day  of  Judgment,  but  that  they  shall  rule  the  world. 
Successively  have  force,  hereditary  right,  talent,  wealth, 
been  the  .aristocracies  of  the  Earth.  But  then,  in  that 
Kingdom  to  come,  goodness  shall  be  the  only  condition 
of  supremacy.  That  is  implied  in  this  expression. 

The  saints  shall  judge.” 

The  second  principle  is,  that  the  best  shall  rule. 

The  Apostles  shall  sit  on  twelve  thrones,  judging  the 
twelve  tribes  of  Israel.”  Now,  take  that  literally,  and 
you  have  nothing  more  than  a cold  barren  fact.  You 
lose  your  time  in  investigating  theories  about  thrones, 
and  the  restoration  of  the  ten  tribes,  and  the  future 
superiority  of  the  Jews.  But  take  it  in  the  spirit  of 
the  passage,  and  it  means,  and  typically  expresses,  that 
in  that  Kingdom  the  best  shall  rule. 

The  third  principle  is,  that  there  each  shall  have  his 
place  according  to  his  capacity.  In  1 Cor.  xii.  28,  this 
is  plainly  laid  down.  Each  man  took  his  position  in 
the  Church  of  Christ,  not  according  to  his  choice,  but 
according  to  his  charism  or  his  gift.  A man  did  not 
become  a prophet,  or  a teacher,  or  an  apostle,  simply 
because  it  was  his  own  desire,  or  because  it  was  conve- 
nient for  his  parents  so  to  bring  him  up,  but  because 
God  had  placed  him  there  from  his  capacity  for  it. 
Observe  here  was  a new  principle.  Each  man  was  to 
do  that  for  which  he  was  most  fitted.  So  in  the  King- 
dom to  come  we  shall  not  have  the  anomalies  which 
now  prevail.  Men  are  ministers  now  who  are  fit  only 
to  plough ; men  are  hidden  now  in  professions  where 
there  is  no  scope  for  their  powers  ; men  who  might  be 
fit  to  hold  the  rod  of  empire  are  now  weaving  cloth. 
But  it  shall  be  altered  there.  I do  not  presume  to  say 
how  this  is  to  be  brought  about.  I only  say  the  Bible 


84 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


declares  it  shall  be  so;  and  until  it  is  so  the  Kingdom  of 
God  is  only  coming^  and  not  come.  The  Advent  of 
the  Saviour  is  yet  to  be  expected. 

These  are  the  things  that  must  be  hereafter.  And 
it  is  only  in  such  a belief  that  human  life  becomes  tol- 
erable. For  a time  arrives  when  our  own  private 
schemes  have  failed,  and  for  us  there  remains  little  to 
be  either  feared  or  hoped.  At  that  time  of  life  a man 
begins  to  cast  his  eyes  on  the  weltering  confusion  of 
this  world,  its  Avrongs,  its  injustices,  its  cruel  anomalies  ; 
and  if  it  were  not  for  a firm  and  deep  conviction  that 
there  is  a better  future  for  the  Race,  that  the  Son  of 
God  will  come  to  the  restitution  of  all  things,  who 
could  suffer  being  here  below  ? 

But  to  return  to  the  case  before  us.  St.  Paul  argues, 
this  is  the  future  destiny  of  the  Church.  Are  these 
principles,  then,  to  be  altogether  in  abeyance  now  ? Is 
this  Advent  to  be  only  a sickly  dream  without  any  con- 
nection with  Life,  or  is  it  not  rather  to  be  the  shaping 
spirit  of  Life  ? In  the  highest  spiritual  matters  the 
Church  shall  decide  hereafter.  Therefore  in  questions 
now  of  earthly  matters,  such  as  in  petty  squabbles  about 
property,  the  least  esteemed  Christian  among  you  should 
be  able  to  decide.  I speak  to  your  shame  ; ” where 
are  your  boasted  Christian  teachers  ? Can  they  not 
judge  in  a matter  of  paltry  quarrel  about  property  ? 

Let  us  not,  however,  mistake  the  Apostle.  Let  us 
guard  against  a natural  misconception  of  his  meaning. 
You  might  think  that  St.  Paul  meant  to  say  that  the 
Corinthians  should  have  ecclesiastical  instead  of  civil 
courts  ; and  for  this  reason,  that  churchmen  and  clergy 
will  decide  rightly  by  a special  promise  of  guidance, 
and  heatlien  and  laymen  wrongly.  But  this  has  not 
to  do  with  the  case  under  consideration.  It  is  not  a 
question  here  between  ecclesiastical  and  civil  courts,  but 
between  I^aw  and  Equity,  between  Litigation  and  Ar- 
bitration. No  stigma  is  liere  affixed,  or  even  implied, 
on  tlie  fairness  of  the  lieathen  magistracy.  The  Roman 
(iovernnuait  was  most  just  and  most  im])artial.  St. 
ihinl  only  means  to  say  that  l^aw  is  one  thing.  Equity 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


85 


another.  The  principles  of  heathen  law  were  not 
Christian,  Here  we  meet  with  the  difficulty,  then,  how 
far  Christianity  deals  with  questions  of  property,  politics, 
or  those  quarrels  of  daily  life  which  require  legal  inter- 
ference. A man  asked  Christ,  Master,  speak  to  my 
brother  that  he  divide  the  inheritance  with  me.”  And 
the  Saviour  refused  to  adjudicate  : Man,  who  made 
me  a ruler  and  judge  over  you?  ” Yet  here  St.  Paul 
requires  the  Christian  Church  to  pronounce  a judgment. 
The  Redeemer  seems  to  say,  Christianity  has  nothing 
to  do  with  deciding  quarrels  : let  them  be  tried  before 
the  appointed  judge.  St.  Paul  seems  to  say  Chris- 
tianity has  everything  to  do  with  it ; go  not  before  the 
magistrate.  Contradictory  as  these  two  statements 
appear,  there  is  no  real  opposition  between  them. 
Christ  says,  not  even  the  Lord  of  the  Church  has  power 
as  a Judge  to  decide  questions  about  earthly  property. 
St.  Paul  says,  the  Church  has  Principles,  according  to 
which  all  such  matters  may  be  set  at  rest.  And  the 
difference  between  the  worldly  court  of  justice  and  the 
Christian  court  of  arbitration  is  a difference  then  of 
diametrical  opposition.  Law  says  you  shall  have  your 
rights  ; the  spirit  of  the  true  Church  says,  defraud  not 
your  neighbor  of  his  rights.  Law  says  you  must  not 
be  wronged ; the  Church  says,  it  is  better  to  suffer 
wrong  than  to  do  wrong. 

We  cannot,  then,  but  understand  that  the  difference 
is  one  of  utter  contrariety  ; for  the  spirit  in  the  one  case 
is,  I will  receive  no  wrong  — in  the  other,  I will  scru- 
pulously take  care  to  do  none.  In  application  of  this 
principle,  the  Apostle  says  : Now,  therefore,  there  is 
utterly  a fault  among  you,  because  ye  go  to  law  one 
with  another.”  As  though  he  had  said  that  state  of 
society  is  radically  wrong  in  which  matters  between 
man  and  man  must  be  decided  by  law.  In  such  a state 
the  remedy  is,  not  more  elaborate  law,  nor  cheaper  law, 
nor  greater  facility  of  law,  but  more  Christianity  : less 
loud  cries  about  Rights,”  more  earnest  anxiety  on 
both  and  all  sides  to  do  no  wrong.  For  this,  you  will 
observe,  was  in  fact  the  Apostle’s  ground  : Now  there- 


86 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTT.ES 


fore  there  is  utterly  a fault  amonin^  because  ye  go 
to  law  one  with  another.  Why  do  ye  not  rather 
take  wrong  ? — why  do  ye  not  rather  suffer  yourselves 
to  be  defrauded?  Nay,  ye  do  wrong,  and  defraud,  and 
that  your  brethren.”  He  leaves  the  whole  question  of 
arbitration  versus  law,  and  strikes  at  the  root  of  the 
matter.  Why  do  ye  not  rather  take  wrong  ? wliy  do 
ye  not  rather  sulfer  yourselves  to  be  defrauded  ? ” Why 
so  ? Because  to  bear  wrong,  to  endure  — that  is 
Christianity.  Christ  expressed  this  in  proverbial  form  : 

If  a man  smite  thee  on  the  one  cheek,  turn  to  him 
the  other.”  If  any  man  sue  thee  at  the  law,  and  take 
away  thy  coat,  let  him  have  thy  cloak  also.”  And 
now  consider  : Is  there,  can  there  be  any  principle  but 
this  which  shall  at  last  heal  the  quarrels  of  the  world  ? 
For  while  one  party  holds  out  as  a matter  of  principle, 
the  other  appeals  to  law,  and  both  are  well  assured  of 
their  own  rights,  what  then  must  be  the  end  ? If  ye 
bite  and  devour  one  another,”  says  St.  Paul,  take 
heed  that  ye  be  not  devoured  one  of  another.” 
Whereas,  if  we  were  all  christianized,  if  we  were  all 
ready  to  bear  and  endure  injuries,  law  would  be  need- 
less— there  would  be  no  cry  of  my  rights,  my 
rights,”  you  will  say,  perhaps  — But  if  we  bear,  we 
shall  be  wronged.  You  forget,  I say  if  all  felt  thus, 
if  the  spirit  of  all  were  endurance,  there  would  be  no 
wrong. 

And  so,  at  last,  Christianity  is  finality.  The  world 
has  no  remedy  for  its  miseries  but  the  cure  of  its  selfish- 
ness. The  Cross  of  Christ,  the  spirit  of  that  Sacrifice 
can  alone  be  the  regeneration  of  the  world.  The 
coming  Revelation  can  only  be  a development  of  the 
last,  as  Christianity  was  of  Judaism.  There  can  be 
no  new  Revelation.  Other  foundation  can  no  man 
lay  than  that  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus  Christ.”  Men 
have  attempted  to  jiroduce  a peaceful  and  just  state  of 
society  by  Ibrce,  by  law,  by  schemes  of  socialism  ; and 
one  after  another,  all  have  failed: — all  must  fail. 
There  remains,  then,  nothing  but  the  Cross  of  Christ, 
the  Spirit  of  the  life  and  deatli  of  Him  who  conquered 
tfie  world  by  being  the  \uctim  of  its  sin. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


87 


2.  The  last  reason  given  by  the  Apostle  in  rebuking 
a litigious  and  quarrelsome  disposition  in  the  Corinthian 
Christians  is,  that  it  contradicts  the  character  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God,  of  which  they  were  members.  A 
true  kingdom  of  Christ  should  be  alto2i:ether  free  from 
persons  of  this  character.  His  argument  runs  thus  : — 
You  ask  me  how  quarrels  are  to  be  decided,  except  by 
law  ; how  the  oppressed  are  to  be  freed  from  gross 
oppressors,  except  by  an  appeal  to  legal  justice  ; how 
flagrant  crimes  — such  as  that  condemned  in  the  fifth 


chapter  — are  to  be  prevented  in  Christians  ? I an- 
swer, the  Church  of  Christ  does  not  include  such 
persons  in  the  Idea  of  its  existence  at  all.  It  only 
contemplates  the  normal  state  ; and  this  is  the  Idea  of 
the  Church  of  Christ : men  washed,  sanctified,  justi- 
fied in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  by  the  Spirit 
of  our  God.”  But  drunkards,  revilers,  extortioners, 
covetous  men,  gross  sensualists,  I cannot  tell  you  how 
to  legislate  for  such,  for  such  ought  not  to  be  in  your 
society  at  all.  Regenerate  thieves,  regenerate  liber- 
tines, regenerate  extortioners ! There  is  a horrible 
contradiction  in  the  very  thought  ; there  is  something 
radically  wrong,  when  such  men,  remaining  in  their 
vices,  are  imagined  as  belonging  to  the  true  kingdom 
of  God.  This  is  what  you  were  as  heathens  ; this  is 
not  what  you  are  to  be  as  Christians. 

And  here  you  observe,  as  usual,  that  the  Apostle 
returns  again  to  the  great  Idea  of  the  Church  of  God, 
the  invisible  Church,  Humanity  as  it  exists  in  the 
Divine  Mind  ; this  is  the  standard  he  ever  puts  before 
them.  He  says.  This  you  are.  If  you  fall  from  this, 
you  contradict  your  nature.  And  now  consider  how 
opposite  this,  St.  Paul’s  way,  is  to  the  common  way  of 
insisting  on  man’s  depravity.  He  insists  on  man’s 
dignity : he  does  not  say  to  a man.  You  are  fallen,  you 
cannot  think  a good  thought,  you  are  half  beast,  half 
devil,  sin  is  alone  to  be  expected  of  you,  it  is  your 
nature  to  sin.  But  he  says  rather,  it  is  your  nature 
not  to  sin  ; you  are  not  the  child  of  the  devil,  but 


88 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Brother  men  — between  these  two  systems  you  must 
choose.  One  is  the  system  of  St.  Paul  and  of  the 
Church  of  England,  whose  baptismal  service  tells  the 
child  that  he  is  a child  of  God  — not  that  by  faith  or 
anything  else  he  can  make  himself  such.  The  other 
is  a system  common  enough  amongst  us,  and  well 
known  to  us,  which  begins  by  telling  the  child  he 
is  a child  of  the  devil,  to  become,  perhaps^  the  child  of 
God.  You  must  choose  : you  cannot  take  both  ; will 
you  begin  from  the  foundation  Adam  or  the  foundation 
Christ  ? The  one  has  in  it  nothing  but  what  is  de- 
basing, discouraging,  and  resting  satisfied  with  low 
attainments  ; the  other  holds  within  it  all  that  is  in- 
vigorating, elevating,  and  full  of  hope. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


89 


LECTURE  XIII. 

December  14,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  vi.  12-20.  — “All  things  are  lawful  unto  me,  but  all 
things  are  not  expedient  : all  things  are  lawful  for  me,  but  I will  not 
be  brought  under  the  power  of  any.  — Meats  for  the  belly,  and  the 
belly  for  m3ats  : but  God  shall  destroy  both  it  and  them.  Now 
the  body  is  not  for  fornication,  but  for  the  Lord;  and  the  Lord  for 
the  body.  - — And  God  hath  both  raised  up  the  Lord,  and  will  also 
raise  up  us  by  his  own  power.  — Know  ye  not  that  your  bodies  are 
the  members  of  Christ  shall  I then  take  the  members  of  Christ, 
and  make  them  the  members  of  an  harlot  God  forbid. — What? 
know  ye  not  that  he  which  is  joined  to  an  harlot  is  one  body  ? for 
two,  saith  he,  shall  be  one  flesh.  — But  he  that  is  joined  unto  the 
Lord  is  one  spirit.  — Flee  fornication.  Every  sin  that  a man  doeth 
is  without  the  body;  but  he  that  committeth  fornication  sinneth 
against  his  own  body.  What  ? know  ye  not  that  your  body  is  the 
temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost  wh  cli  is  in  you,  which  ye  have  of  God, 
and  ye  are  not  your  own  ? — For  ye  are  bought  with  a price  : there- 
fore glorify  God  in  your  body^  and  in  your  spirit,  which  are 
God’s.” 

We  have  divided  this  chapter  into  two  branches,  the 
first  relating  to  the  right  method  of  deciding  Christian 
quarrels.  Our  subject  last  Sunday  was  the  sin  of  a 
litigious  spirit,  and  this  I endeavored  to  show  in  a two- 
fold way  : — 1st.  As  opposed  to  the  power  lodged  in 
the  Christian  Church  to  settle  quarrels  by  arbitration 
on  the  principles  of  equity  and  charity,  which  are 
principles  quite  distinct  from  law ; one  being  the 
anxiety  to  get,  the  other  the  desire  to  do  right.  And 
in  assurance  of  this  power  being  present  with  the 
Church  then,  St.  Paul  reminds  the  Corinthian  Chris- 
tians of  the  Advent  Day  when  it  shall  be  complete  — 
when  the  saints  shall  judge  the  world.”  For  the 
advent  of  Jesus  Christ, — the  Kingdom  of  God,  — is 
but  the  complete  development  of  powers  and  principles 
which  are  even  now  at  work,  changing  and  moulding 
the  principles  of  the  world.  If  hereafter  the  saints 
8* 


90 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


shall  judge  the  world,  are  ye  unworthy  now  to  judge 
the  smallest  matters  ? ” 

2d.  The  second  point  of  view  from  which  St.  Paul 
regarded  the  sinfulness  of  this  litigious  spirit  was  the 
consideration  of  the  Idea  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 
Christian  quarrels  ! Disputes  between  (hiristian  extor- 
tioners ! The  idea  of  the  Church  of  God  admits  of  no 
such  thought  — Ye  are  washed,  ye  are  sanctified,  ye 
are  justified  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  in  the 
spirit  of  our  God.’’ 

I urged  this  as  the  apostolic  mode  of  appeal  — to 
men  as  redeemed,  rather  than  to  men  as  debased,  fallen, 
reprobate.  And  I said  further,  that  we  must  make  our 
choice  between  these  systems  — the  one,  that  of  modern 
sectarianism ; the  other,  that  of  St.  Paul,  and,  as  I 
believe,  of  the  Church  of  England.  We  must  start 
from  the  foundation  of  Adam’s  fallen  nature,  or  else 
from  the  foundation  of  Jesus  Christ : we  are  either 
children  of  the  devil,  or  we  are  children  of  God.  St. 
Paul  says  to  all,  Ye  are  redeemed.” 

To-day  we  are  to  consider  another  question.  What 
are  the  limits  of  Christian  rights  ? 

We  can  scarcelv  conceive  that  the  Relimon  of  Jesus 
Christ  could  ever  be  thought  to  sanction  sin  and  self- 
indulgence.  But  so  it  was.  Men  in  the  Corinthian 
Church,  having  heard  the  Apostle  teach  the  Law  of 
Liberty,  pushed  that  doctrine  so  far  as  to  make  it  mean 
a right  to  do  whatsoever  a man  wills  to  do.  Accord- 
ingly he  found  himself  called  on  to  oppose  a system  of 
self-indulgence  and  sensuality,  a gratification  of  the 
appetites  and  the  passions  taught  systematically  as  the 
highest  Christianity. 

By  these  teachers  self-gratification  was  maintained 
on  the  o’l'ound  of  two  riMits. 

O O ^ ^ 

First.  Tlie  rights  of  Christian  liberty.  All  things 
are  lawful  for  me.” 

Secondly.  The  rights  of  nature.  Meats  for  the 
belly,  and  the  belly  for  meats,”  and  God  shall  destroy 
both  it  and  them.” 

First.  The  rights  of  Christian  liberty.  They  stiffly 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


91 


stood  on  these.  Their  very  watchword  was,  All 
things  are  lawful.”  It  is  easy  to  understand  how  this 
exaggeration  came  about.  Men  suddenly  finding  them- 
selves freed  from  Jewish  law,  with  its  thousand  restric- 
tions, naturally  went  very  far  in  their  new  principles. 
For  the  first  crude  application  of  a theory  either  in  poli- 
tics or  religion  is  always  wild.  They  said.  We  may 
eat  what  we  will.  We  are  free  from  the  observance 
of  days.  All  things  are  lawful.  That  which  is  done 
by  a child  of  God  ceases  to  be  sin.  St.  Paul  met  this 
exaggeration  by  declaring  that  Christian  liberty  is  lim- 
ited, first,  by  Christian  expediency — All  things  are 
lawful  ” — yes,  but  all  things  are  not  expedient ; ” 
and  secondly,  by  its  own  nature  — All  things  are 
lawful  for  me,  but  I will  not  be  brought  under  the 
power  of  any.” 

We  will  consider  first  the  meaning  of  Christian  expe- 
diency. It  is  that  which  is  relatively  best  — the  best 
attainable.  There  are  two  kinds  of  best : ” — the 

best  ” absolutely,  and  the  best  ” under  present  cir- 
cumstances. It  is  absolutely  best  that  war  should  cease 
throughout  the  world.  Relatively,  it  is  best,  under 
present  circumstances,  that  a country  should  be  ready 
to  defend  itself  if  attacked.  A defensive  fleet  is  expe- 
dient, and  relatively  best,  but  not  tlie  absolutely  Chris- 
tian best. 

Now  that  which  limits  this  liberty  is,  the  profit  of 
others.  For  example,  in  the  northern  part  of  these 
islands  the  observance  of  the  Sabbath  is  much  more 
rigorous  than  it  is  here.  The  best  conceivable  would 
be  that  all  over  Christendom  the  free  high  views  of  the 
Apostle  Paul  should  be  spread,  the  doctrine  of  the  sanc- 
tification of  all  time.  But  so  it  is  not  yet.  In  the 
North,  on  Sunday,  men  will  not  sound  an  instrument 
of  music,  nor  take  a walk  except  to  a place  of  worship. 
Now,  suppose  that  an  English  Christian  were  to  find 
himself  in  some  Highland  village,  what  would  be  his 
duty  ? All  things  are  lawful  for  ” him.  By  the  law 
of  Christian  liberty  he  is  freed  from  bondage  to  meats 
or  drinks,  to  holidays  or  Sabbath  days  ; but  if  his  use 


92 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


of  this  Christian  liberty  should,  shock  his  brother  Chris- 
tians, or  should  become  an  excuse  tor  the  less  conscien- 
tious among  them  to  follow  his  example,  against  the 
dictates  of  their  own  conscience,  then  it  would  be  his 
Christian  duty  to  abridge  his  own  liberty,  because  the 
use  of  it  would  be  inexpedient. 

The  second  limitation  to  this  liberty  arises  out  of  its 
own  nature.  In  that  short  sentence,  I will  not  be 
brought  under  the  power  of  any,”  is  contained  one  of 
the  profoundest  views  of  Christian  liberty ; I will  try  to 
elucidate  it. 

Christian  liberty  is  internal.  It  resides  in  the  deeps 
of  the  soul ; a soul  freed  by  faith  is  safe  from  superstition. 
He  who  fears  God  will  fear  nothing  else.  He  who 
knows  moral  wrong  to  be  the  only  evil,  will  be  free 
from  the  scrupulosities  which  torment  others.  It  is 
that  free  self-determination  which  rules  all  things,  which 
can  enjoy  or  abstain  at  will.  This  spirit  is  expressed 
in  “ All  things  are  yours,  whether  life  or  death,  things 
present  or  things  to  come  — all  are  yours.” 

Hence  is  clear  what  St.  Paul  so  often  says  in  his 
Epistles.  This  liberty  can  manifest  itself  under  out- 
ward restrictions ; for  the  spirit,  exalted  above  all 
outward  restrictions,  no  longer  feels  them  to  be  restric- 
tions. So  if  a Christian  were  in  slavery  he  was  Christ’s 
freedman,  that  is,  he  has  a right  to  be  free ; but  if  by 
circumstances  he  is  obliged  to  remain  a slave,  he  is  not 
troubled  as  if  guilty  of  sin  : he  can  wear  a chain  or  not 
with  equal  spiritual  freedom. 

Now,  upon  this  the  Apostle  makes  this  subtle  and 
exquisitely  fine  remark : — To  be  forced  to  use  lib- 
erty is  actually  a surrender  of  liberty.  If  I turn  ‘‘  I 
may  ” into  I must,”  I am  in  bondage  again.  All 
things  are  lawful  to  me.”  But  if  I say.  Not  only 
lawful,  but  I must  use  them,  I am  brought  under  their 
power. 

For,  observe,  there  are  two  kinds  of  bondage.  I am 
not  free  if  I am  under  sentence  of  exile,  and  must  leave 
my  country.  But  also  I am  not  free  if  I am  under 
arrest,  ami  must  not  leave  it.  So,  too,  if  I think  I 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


93 


must  not  touch  meat  on  Friday,  or  that  I must  not 
read  any  but  a religious  book  on  a Sunday,  I am 
in  bondage.  But  again,  if  I am  tormented  with  a 
scrupulous  feeling  that  I did  wrong  in  fasting,  or  if 
I feel  that  I must  read  secular  books  on  Sunday  to 
prove  my  freedom,  then  my  liberty  has  become  slavery 
again. 

It  is  a blessed  liberation  to  know  that  natural  incli- 
nations are  not  necessarily  sinful.  But  if  I say  all 
natural  and  innocent  inclinations  must  be  obeyed  at  all 
times,  then  I enter  into  bondage  once  more.  Christ 
proved  to  St.  Peter  that  He  was  free  from  the  neces- 
sity of  paying  tribute,  the  law  being  unjust  as  applied 
to  Him.  But  had  He  felt  Himself  bound  by  conscience 
not  to  pay  it.  He  would  not  have  been  free.  He  paid 
the  tribute,  and  thereby  proved  his  liberty.  For  he 
alone  is  free  who  can  use  outward  things  with  conscien- 
tious freedom  as  circumstances  vary ; who  can  take  off 
restrictions  from  himself,  or  submit  to  them  for  good 
reasons ; who  can  either  do  without  a form  or  ritual, 
or  can  use  it. 

See,  then,  how  rare  as  well  as  noble  a thing  is  Chris- 
tian liberty ! Free  from  superstition,  but  free  also  from 
the  rude,  inconsiderate  spirit  which  thinks  there  is  no 
liberty  where  it  is  not  loudly  vindicated : free  from  the 
observance  of  rules,  of  rites,  of  ceremonies,  free  also 
from  the  popular  prejudices  which  dare  not  use  forms 
or  observe  days,  and  free  from  the  vulgar  outcry  which 
is  always  protesting  against  the  faith  or  practice  of 
others. 

The  second  plea  of  the  teachers  St.  Paul  is  here 
condemning  is,  the  rights  of  Nature. 

There  is  some  difficulty  in  the  exposition  of  this 
chapter,  because  the  Apostle  mixes  together  the  pleas 
of  his  opponents,  with  his  own  answers  to  those  pleas  — 
states  them  himself,  in  order  that  he  may  reply  to  them. 
The  first  part  of  the  thirteenth  verse  contains  two  of 
these  pleas ; the  second  part  of  this  verse,  with  the 
fourteenth,  contains  his  reply.  1.  Meats  for  the 
belly,  and  the  belly  for  meats  ” — a natural  correspond- 


94 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ency.  Here  are  appetites,  and  tilings  made  on  purpose 
to  satisfy  appetites.  Therefore,’’  said  they,  Nature 
herself  says,  ^ Enjoy  ! ’ ” 2.  The  transitoriness  of  this 

enjoyment  furnishes  an  argument  for  tlie  enjoyment. 

God  shall  bring  to  an  end  both  it  and  them.”  That 
is,  the  body  will  perish,  so  will  the  food  and  the  enjoy- 
ments — they  do  not  belong  to  eternity,  therefore  in- 
dulgence is  a matter  of  indifference.  It  is  foolish 
ignorance  to  think  that  these  are  sins,  any  more  than 
the  appetites  of  brutes  which  perish. 

Now  to  these  two  pleas,  St.  Paul  makes  two  answers. 
To  the  argument  about  correspondency  of  appetites 
with  the  gratifications  provided  for  them  — an  argu- 
ment drawn  from  our  nature  to  excuse  gluttony  and 
sensuality  — he  replies  thus,  The  body  is  not  for  self- 
indulgence,  but  for  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  for  the 
body.”  In  other  words,  he  tells  of  a more  exact 
mutual  correspondency.  He  reveals  a true  and  higher 
nature. 

Here,  again,  we  see  that  St.  Paul  comes  into  collision 
with  a common  mode  of  teaching,  which  says  man’s 
nature  is  utterly  vile  and  corrupt.  These  Corinthians 
said  that,  and  St.  Paul  replied,  No ! that  is  a slander 
upon  God.  That  is  not  your  nature.  Your  true  na- 
ture is,  the  body  for  the  Lord,  and  the  Lord  for  the 
body. 

There  is  much  confusion  and  dispute  about  this  word 
‘‘  nature,”  because  it  is  rather  ambiguous.  Take  an 
illustration.  The  nature  of  a watch  is  correspondence 
with  the  sun,  perfect  harmony  of  wheels  and  balance. 
But  suppose  that  the  regulator  was  removed,  and  the 
mainspring  unchecked  ran  down,  throwing  all  into 
confusion.  Then  two  things  might  be  said.  One 
might  say.  It  is  the  nature  of  that  watch  to  err.  But 
would  it  not  be  a higher  truth  to  say,  Its  nature  is  to 
go  rightly,  and  it  is  just  because  it  has  departed  from 
its  nature  that  it  errs  ? 

So  s])eaks  the  A])Ostle.  To  bo  governed  by  the 
springs  of  impulse  only — your  appetites  and  passions  — 
this  is  not  your  nature.  For  the  nature  is  the  whole 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


95 


man ; the  passions  are  but  a part  of  the  man.  And 
therefore  our  redemption  from  the  lower  life  must  con- 
sist, not  in  a perpetual  assertion  and  dinning  reiteration 
of  our  vileness,  but  in  a reminder  of  what  we  are  — 
what  our  true  nature  is. 

To  the  other  plea,  the  transitoriness  of  the  body,  he 
replies.  You  say  the  body  will  perish : God  shall 
bring  it  to  an  end.”  I say  the  body  will  not  perish. 
“ God  hath  raised  up  the  Lord,  and  will  also  raise  up 
us  by  his  power.”  It  is  the  outward  form  of  the  body 
alone  which  is  transitory.  Itself  shall  be  renewed — a 
nobler,  more  glorious  form,  fitted  for  a higher  and 
spiritual  existence. 

Now  here,  according  to  St.  Paul,  was  the  importance 
of  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  of  the  body.  He 
taught  that  the  Life  which  proceeds  from  faith  carries 
with  it  the  germ  of  a higher  futurity.  It  will  pervade 
humanity  to  its  full  extent  until  body,  soul,  and  spirit 
are  presented  blameless  unto  the  coming  of  the  Lord 
Jesus. 

And  hence,  too,  he  drew  an  awful  argument  against 
sin.  Some  sins  are  committed  without  the  body ; sins 
of  sensuality  and  animal  indulgence  are  against  the 
body.  Our  bodies,  which  are  members  of  Christ,” 
to  be  ruled  by  His  Spirit,  become  by  such  sins  unfit 
for  immortality  with  Christ.  This  is  an  awful  truth. 
Sins  committed  against  the  body  affect  that  wondrous 
tissue  which  we  call  the  nervous  system : the  source 
of  all  our  acutest  suffering  and  intensest  blessing,  is 
rendered  so  susceptible  by  God,  as  to  be  at  once 
our  punishment  or  reward.  Sin  carries  with  it  its 
own  punishment.  There  is  not  a sin  of  indulgence, 
gluttony,  intemperance,  or  licentiousness  of  any  form, 
which  does  not  write  its  terrible  retribution  on  our 
bodies. 

Lax  notions  repecting  self-indulgence  are  simply 
false : sinful  pleasures  are  not  trifles  and  indifferent. 
Irritability,  many  an  hour  of  isolation,  of  dark  and 
dreary  hopelessness,  is  the  natural  result  of  powers  un- 
duly stimulated,  unrighteously  gratified. 


96 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


In  conclusion,  it  follows  that  nothing  is  really  in- 
different. In  itself,  perhaps,  it  may  be ; but  under 
special  circumstances  duty  always  lies  one  way  or  the 
other,  and  nothing  presents  itself  to  us  in  our  daily 
life  simply  in  itself,  as  unconnected  with  other  con- 
siderations. 

And  so  Christian  love  makes  all  life  one  great 
duty. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


97 


LECTURE  XIV. 

December  21,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  vii.  1-22. — “Now  concerning  the  things  whereof 
ye  wrote  unto  me  : It  is  good  for  a man  not  to  touch  a woman.  — 
Nevertheless,  to  avoid  fornication,  let  every  man  have  his  own  wife, 
and  let  every  woman  have  her  own  husband.  — Let  the  husband 
render  unto  the  wife  due  benevolence  : and  likewise  also  the  wife 
unto  the  husband.  — The  wife  hath  not  power  of  her  own  body, 
but  the  husband  : and  likewise  also  the  husband  hath  not  power  of 
his  own  body,  but  the  wife.  — Defraud  ye  not  one  the  other,  except  it 
be  with  consent  for  a time,  that  ye  may  give  yourselves  to  fasting 
and  prayer;  and  come  together  again,  that  Satan  tempt  you  not  for 
your  incontinency.  — But  I speak  this  by  permission,  and  not  of 
commandment.  — Eor  I would  that  all  men  were  even  as  I myself. 
But  every  man  hath  his  proper  gift  of  God,  one  after  this  manner, 
and  another  after  that.  — I say  therefore  to  the  unmarried  and  wid- 
ows, It  is  good  for  them  if  they  abide  even  as  I.  — But  if  they  can- 
not contain,  let  them  marry  : for  it  is  better  to  marry  than  to  burn. 

— And  unto  the  married,  I command,  yet  not  I,  but  the  Lord  : Let 
not  the  wife  depart  from  her  husband.  — But  and  if  she  depart,  let 
her  remain  unmarried,  or  be  reconciled  to  her  husband  : and  let 
not  the  husband  put  away  his  wife.  — But  to  the  rest  speak  I,  not 
the  Lord  : If  any  brother  hath  a wife  that  believeth  not,  and  she  be 
pleased  to  dwell  with  him,  let  him  not  put  her  away. — And  the 
woman  which  hath  an  husband  that  believeth  not,  and  if  he  be 
pleased  to  dwell  with  her,  let  her  not  leave  him.  — Eor  the  un- 
believing husband  is  sanctified  by  the  wife,  and  the  unbelieving 
wife  is  sanctified  by  the  husband  : else  were  your  children  unclean  : 
but  now  are  they  holy.  — But  if  the  unbelieving  depart,  let  him 
depart.  A brother  or  a sister  is  not  under  bondage  in  such  cases  : 
but  God  hath  called  us  to  peace.  — For  what  knowest  thou,  0 wife, 
whether  thou  shalt  save  thy  husband  ? or  how  knowest  thou,  0 man, 
whether  thou  shalt  save  thy  wife  ? — But  as  God  hath  distributed  to 
every  man,  as  the  Lord  hath  called  every  one,  so  let  him  walk.  And 
so  ordain  I in  all  churches.  •: — Is  any  man  called  being  circumcised  ? 
let  him  not  become  uncircumcised.  Is  any  called  in  uncircumcision  ? 
let  him  not  be  circumcised.  — Circumcision  is  nothing,  and  uncir- 
cumcision is  nothing,  but  the  keeping  of  the  commandments  of  God. 

— Let  every  man  abide  in  the  same  calling  wherein  he  was  called. 

— Art  thou  called  being  a servant  ? care  not  for  it : but  if  thou 
mayest  be  made  free,  use  it  rather.  — For  he  that  is  called  in  the 
Lord,  being  a servant,  is  the  Lord’s  freeman  : likewise  also  he  that 
is  called,  being  free,  is  Christ’s  servant.” 

The  whole  of  this  seventh  chapter  of  the  First 

9 


98 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Epistle  of  the  Apostle  Paul  to  the  Corinthians  is 
occupied  with  some  questions  of  Christian  cjisuistry. 
In  the  application  of  the  principles  of  Christianity  to 
the  varying  circumstances  of  life,  innumeralde  diffi- 
culties had  arisen,  and  the  Corinthians  upon  these 
difficulties  had  put  certain  questions  to  the  Apostle 
Paul.  We  have  here  the  Apostle’s  answers  to  many 
of  these  questions.  There  are,  however,  two  great 
divisions  into  which  these  answers  generally  fall.  St. 
Paul  makes  a distinction  between  those  things  which 
he  sjieaks  by  commandment,  and  those  which  he  speaks 
only  by  permission  ; there  is  a distinction  between 
what  he  says  as  from  the  Lord,  and  what  only  from 
himself ; between  that  which  he  speaks  to  them  as 
being  taught  of  God,  and  that  which  he  speaks  only 
as  a servant,  called  of  the  Lord  and  faithful.”  It 
is  manifestly  plain  that  there  are  many  questions  in 
which  right  and  wrong  are  not  variable,  but  indis- 
soluble and  fixed;  while  there  are  questions,  on  the 
other  hand,  where  these  terms  are  not  fixed,  but  vari- 
able, fiuctuating,  altering,  dependent  upon  circumstances. 
As,  for  instance,  those  in  which  the  Apostle  teaches 
in  the  present  chapter  the  several  duties  and  advantages 
of  marriage  and  celibacy.  There  may  be  circumstances 
in  which  it  is  the  duty  of  a Christian  man  to  be  married, 
there  are  others  in  which  it  may  be  his  duty  to  remain 
unmarried.  For  instance,  in  the  case  of  a missionary  it 
may  be  right  to  be  married  rather  than  unmarried  ; on 
the  other  hand,  in  the  case  of  a pauper,  not  having 
the  wherewithal  to  bring  up  and  maintain  a family,  it 
may  be  proper  to  remain  unmarried.  You  will  ob- 
serve, however,  that  no  fixed  law  can  be  laid  down 
upon  this  subject.  We  cannot  say  marriage  is  a Chris- 
tian duty,  nor  celibacy  is  a Christian  duty  ; nor  that 
it  is  in  every  case  the  duty  of  a missionary  to  be  mar- 
ried, or  of  a pauper  to  be  unmarried.  All  these  things 
must  vary  according  to  circumstances,  and  the  duty 
must  be  stated  not  universally,  but  with  reference  to 
tliose  c ire  urn  stanches. 

'rii(‘se,  therefore,  ai’e  qu(‘stions  of  casuistry,  which 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


99 


depend  upon  the  particular  case:  from  which  word 
the  term  casuistry  ” is  derived.  On  these  points  the 
Apostle  speaks,  not  by  commandment,  but  by  per- 
mission ; not  as  speaking  by  God’s  command,  but  as 
having  the  Spirit  of  God.  A distinction  has  sometimes 
been  drawn  with  reference  to  this  chapter  between 
that  which  the  Apostle  speaks  by  inspiration,  and  what 
he  speaks  as  a man  uninspired.  The  distinction,  how- 
ever, is  an  altogether  false  one,  and  beside  the  question. 
For  the  real  distinction  is  not  between  inspired  and 
uninspired,  but  between  a decision  in  matters  of  Chris- 
tian duty,  and  advice  in  matters  of  Christian  prudence. 
It  is  abundantly  evident  that  God  cannot  give  advice  ; 
He  can  only  issue  a command.  God  cannot  say,  It 
is  better  to  do  this  ; ” his  perfections  demand  something 
absolute  : Thou  shalt  do  this  ; thou  shalt  not  do  this.” 
Whensoever,  therefore,  we  come  to  advice  there  is 
introduced  the  human  element  rather  than  the  divine. 
In  all  such  cases,  therefore,  as  are  dependent  upon  cir- 
cumstances, the  Apostle  speaks  not  as  inspired,  but  as 
uninspired ; as  one  whose  judgment  we  have  no  right 
to  find  fault  with  or  to  cavil  at,  who  lays  down  what  is 
a matter  of  Christian  prudence,  and  not  a bounden  and 
universal  duty.  The  matter  of  the  present  discourse 
will  take  in  various  verses  in  this  chapter  — from  the 
tenth  to  the  twenty-fourth  verse  — leaving  part  of  the 
commencement  and  the  conclusion  for  our  considera- 
tion, if  God  permit,  next  Sunday. 

There  are  three  main  questions  on  which  the  Apos- 
tle here  gives  his  inspired  decision.  The  first  decision 
is  concerning  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage-bond  between 
two  Christians.  His  verdict  is  given  in  the  tenth 
verse : Unto  the  married  I command,  yet  not  I,  but 

the  Lord,  Let  not  the  wife  depart  from  her  hus- 
band.” He  lays  down  this  principle,  that  the  union  is 
an  indissoluble  one.  Upon  such  a subject,  Christian 
brethren,  before  a mixed  congregation,  it  is  manifestly 
evident  that  we  can  only  speak  in  general  terms.  It 
will  be  sufficient  to  say  that  marriage  is  of  all  earthly 
unions  almost  the  only  one  permitting  of  no  change  but 


100 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


that  of  death.  It  is  that  engagement  in  which  man 
exerts  his  most  awful  and  solemn  power  — the  power 
of  responsibility  which  belongs  to  him  as  one  that  shall 
give  account  — the  power  of  abnegating  the  right  to 
change  — the  power  of  parting  with  his  freedom  — the 
power  of  doing  that  which  in  this  world  can  never  be 
reversed.  And  yet  it  is  perhaps  that  relationship  which 
is  spoken  of  most  frivolously,  and  entered  into  most 
carelessly  and  most  wantonly.  It  is  not  an  union 
merely  between  two  creatures,  it  is  an  union  between 
two  spirits ; and  the  intention  of  that  bond  is  to  perfect 
the  nature  of  both,  by  supplementing  their  deficiencies 
with  the  force  of  contrast,  giving  to  each  sex  those 
excellencies  in  which  it  is  naturally  deficient ; to" the  one 
strength  of  character  and  firmness  of  moral  will,  to  the 
other  sympathy,  meekness,  tenderness.  And  just  so 
solemn,  and  just  so  glorious  as  these  ends  are  for  which 
the  union  was  contemplated  and  intended,  just  so  ter- 
rible are  the  consequences  if  it  be  perverted  and  abused. 
For  there  is  no  earthly  relationship  which  lias  so  much 
power  to  ennoble  and  to  exalt.  Very  strong  language 
does  the  Apostle  use  in  this  chapter  respecting  it : 
“ What  knoweth  thou,  O wife,  whether  thou  shalt  save 
thy  husband  ? or  how  knowest  thou,  O man,  whether 
thou  shalt  save  thy  wife  ? ” The  very  power  of  saving 
belongs  to  this  relationship.  And,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  is  no  earthly  relationship  which  has  so  much 
power  to  wreck  and  ruin  the  soul.  For  there  are  two 
rocks  in  this  world  of  ours  on  which  the  soul  must 
either  anchor  or  be  wrecked.  The  one  is  God  ; the 
other  is  the  sex  opposite  to  itself.  The  one  is  the 
Rock  of  Ages,”  on  which  if  the  human  soul  anchors 
it  lives  the  blessed  life  of  faith  ; against  which  if  the 
soul  be  dashed  and  broken,  there  ensues  the  wreck  of 
Atheism  — the  worst  ruin  of  the  soul.  The  other 
rock  is  of  another  character.  Blessed  is  the  man, 
blessed  is  the  woman,  whose  life-experience  has  taught 
a confiding  belief  in  the  excellencies  of  the  sex  o])po- 
site  to  their  own  — a blessedness  second  only  to  the 
blessedness  of  salvation.  And  the  ruin  in  the  other 


TO  THE  COIlINTinAXS. 


101 


case  is  second  only  to  tlie  ruin  of  everlasting  perdition 
— the  same  wreck  and  ruin  of  the  soul.  These,  then, 
are  the  two  tremendous  alternatives : on  the  one  hand 
the  possibility  of  securing,  in  all  sympathy  and  tender- 
ness, the  laying  of  that  step  on  which  man  rises  to- 
wards his  perfection ; on  the  other  hand  the  blight  of 
all  sympathy,  to  be  dragged  down  to  earth,  and  forced 
to  become  frivolous  and  commonplace  ; to  lose  all  zest 
and  earnestness  in  life,  to  have  heart  and  life  degraded 
by  mean  and  perpetually  recurring  sources  of  disagree- 
ment ; these  are  the  two  alternatives  : and  it  is  the 
worst  of  these  alternatives  which  the  young  risk  when 
they  form  an  inconsiderate  union,  excusably  indeed  — 
because  through  inexperience ; and  it  is  the  worst  of 
these  alternatives  which  parents  risk  — not  excusably, 
but  inexcusably  — when  they  bring  up  their  children 
with  no  higher  view  of  what  that  tie  is  than  the  merely 
prudential  one  of  a rich  and  honorable  marriage. 

The  second  decision  which  the  Apostle  makes  re- 
specting another  of  the  questions  proposed  to  him  by 
the  Corinthians,  is  as  to  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage 
bond  between  a Christian  and  one  who  is  a heathen. 
When  Christianity  first  entered  into  our  world,  and 
was  little  understood,  it  seemed  to  threaten  the  disloca- 
tion and  alteration  of  all  existing  relationships.  Many 
difficulties  arose ; such,  for  instance,  as  the  one  here 
started.  When  of  two  heathen  parties  only  one  was 
converted  to  Christianity,  the  question  arose.  What  in 
this  case  is  the  duty  of  the  Christian  ? Is  not  the  duty 
separation  ? Is  not  the  marriage  in  itself  null  and 
void,  as  if  it  were  an  union  between  one  dead  and  one 
living  ? And  that  perpetual  contact  with  a heathen, 
and,  therefore,  an  enemy  of  God  — is  not  that,  in  a 
relation  so  close  and  intimate,  perpetual  defilement  ? 
The  Apostle  decides  this  with  his  usual  inspired  wis- 
dom. He  decides  that  the  marriage-bond  is  sacred 
still.  Diversities  of  religious  opinion,  even  the  farthest 
and  widest  diversity,  cannot  sanction  separation.  And 
so  he  decides,  in  the  13th  verse,  The  woman  which 
hath  an  husband  that  . believeth  not,  and  if  he  be 


102 


lecturp:s  on  the  epistles 


pleased  to  dwell  with  her,  let  her  not  leave  him.” 
And,  If  any  brother  hath  a wife  that  lielieveth  not, 
and  she  be  pleased  to  dwell  with  him,  let  him  not  put 
her  away,’’  verse  12.  Now  for  us,  in  the  present  day, 
the  decision  on  this  point  is  not  of  so  much  importance 
as  the  reason  which  is  adduced  in  support  of  it.  Tlie 
proof  which  the  Apostle  gives  of  the  sanctity  of  the 
marriage  is  exceedingly  remarkable.  Practically  it 
amounts  to  this : — If  this  were  no  marriage,  but  an 
unhallowed  alliance,  it  would  follow  as  a necessary  con- 
sequence that  the  offspring  could  not  be  reckoned  in 
any  sense  as  the  children  of  God  ; but,  on  the  other 
hand,  it  is  the  instinctive,  unwavering  conviction  of 
every  Christian  parent,  united  though  Im  or  she  may 
be  to  a heathen,  My  child  is  a child  of  God,”  or,  in 
the  Jewish  form  of  expression,  My  child  is  cleans 
So  the  Apostle  says,  the  unbelieving  husband  is  sanc- 
tified by  the  wife,  and  the  unbelieving  wife  is  sanctified 
by  the  husband  : else  were  your  children  unclean ; but 
now  tliey  are  holy.”  For  it  follows,  if  the  children 
are  holy  in  the  sense  of  dedicated  to  God,  and  are 
capable  of  Christian  relationship,  then  the  marriage 
relation  was  not  unhallowed,  but  sacred  and  indissolu- 
ble. The  value  of  this  argument  in  the  present  day 
depends  on  its  relation  to  baptism.  The  great  question 
we  are  deciding  in  the  present  day  may  be  reduced  to 
a very  few  words.  This  question  — the  Baptismal 
question  — is  this  : — Whether  we  are  baptized  because 
we  are  the  children  of  God,  or,  whether  we  are  the 
children  of  God  because  we  are  baptized;  whether, 
in  other  words,  when  the  Catechism  of  the  Church 
of  England  says  that  by  baptism  we  are  made  the 
children  of  God,”  we  are  to  understand  thereby  that 
we  are  made  something  which  we  were  not  before  — 
magically  and  mysteriously  changed  ; or,  whether  we 
ar(j  to  understand  that  we  are  made  the  children  of 
God  by  ba[)tism  in  the  same  sense  that  a sovereign  is 
made  a sovereign  by  coronation  ? 

Here  the  Apostle’s  argument  is  full,  decisive,  and 
unanswerable.  He  does  not  say  that  these  children 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


103 


were  Cliristian,  or  clean,  because  tliey  were  baptized^ 
but  they  were  the  children  of  God  because  they  were 
the  children  of  one  Christian  parent ; nay,  more  than 
that,  such  children  could  scarcely  ever  have  been  bap- 
tized, because,  if  the  rite  met  with  opposition, from  one 
of  the  parents,  it  would  be  an  entire  and  perfect  veto 
to  the  possibility  of  baptism.  You  will  observe  that 
the  very  fundamental  idea  out  of  which  infant-baptism 
arises  is,  that  the  impression  produced  upon  the  mind 
and  character  of  the  child  by  the  Christian  parent 
makes  the  child  one  of  a Christian  community ; and, 
therefore,  as  Peter  argued  that  Cornelius  had  received 
the  Holy  Ghost,  and  so  was  to  be  baptized,  just  in  the 
same  way,  as  they  are  adopted  into  the  Christian  fam- 
ily, and  receive  a Christian  impression,  the  children  of 
Christian  parents  are  also  to  be  baptized. 

Observe  also  the  important  truth  which  comes  out 
collaterally  from  this  argument  — namely,  the  sacred- 
ness of  the  impression,  which  arises  from  the  close 
connection  between  parent  and  child.  Stronger  far 
than  education  — gohig  on  before  education  can  com- 
mence, possibly  from  the  very  first  moments  of  con- 
sciousness— is  the  impression  we  make  on  our  children. 
Our  character,  voice,  features,  qualities  — modified,  no 
doubt,  by  entering  into  a new  human  being,  and  into  a 
different  organization  — are  impressed  upon  our  chil- 
dren. Not  the  inculcation  of  opinions,  but  much  more, 
the  formation  of  principles,  and  of  the  tone  of  charac- 
ter, the  derivation  of  qualities.  Physiologists  tell  us  of 
the  derivation  of  the  mental  qualities  from  the  father, 
and  of  the  moral  from  the  mother.  But,  be  this  as  it 
may,  there  is  scarcely  one  here  who  cannot  trace  back 
liis  present  religious  character  to  some  impression,  in 
early  life,  from  one  or  other  of  his  parents  — a tone,  a 
look,  a word,  a habit,  or  even,  it  may  be,  a bitter,  mis- 
erable exclamation  of  remorse. 

The  third  decision  which  the  Apostle  gives,  the  third 
principle  which  he  lays  down,  is  but  the  development 
of  the  last.  Christianity,  he  says,  does  not  interfere 
with  existing  relationships.  First,  he  lays  down  the 


104 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


principle,  and  tlien  unfolds  the  principle  in  two  ways, 
ecclesiastically  and  civilly.  The  principle  he  lavs 
down  in  almost  every  variety  of  form.  In  the  ITtli 
verse : As  God  hath  distributed  to  every  man,  as  the 

Lord  hath  called  every  one,  so  let  him  walk.”  In  the 
20th  verse : Let  every  man  abide  in  the  same  calling 
wherein  he  was  called.”  In  the  24th  verse:  Breth- 
ren, let  every  man  wherein  he  is  called  therein  abide 
with  God.”  This  is  the  principle.  Christianity  was 
not  to  interfere  with  existing  relationships ; Christian 
men  were  to  remain  in  those  relationships  in  which 
they  were,  and  in  them  to  develop  the  inward  spiritual- 
ity of  the  Christian  life.  Then  liiTapplies  this  principle 
in  two  ways.  First  of  all,  ecclesiastically.  With  re- 
spect to  the  Church,  or  ecclesiastical  affairs,  he  says  — 
Is  any  man  called  being  circumcised.  Let  him  not 
become  uncircumcised.  Is  any  man  in  uncircumcis- 
ion ? Let  him  not  be  circumcised.”  In  other  words, 
the  Jews,  after  their  conversion,  were  to  continue  Jews, 
if  they  would.  Christianity  required  no  change  in 
these  outward  things,  for  it  was  not  in  these  that  the 
depth  and  reality  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ  consisted. 
So  the  Apostle  Paul  took  Timothy  and  circumcised 
him  ; so,  also,  he  used  all  the  Jewish  customs  with 
which  he  was  familiar,  and  performed  a vow,  as  related 
in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  ^‘having  shorn  his  head 
in  Cenchrea  ; for  he  had  a vow.”  It  was  not  his 
opinion  that  it  was  the  duty  of  a Christian  to  overthrow 
the  Jewish  system.  He  knew  that  the  Jewish  system 
could  not  last,  but  what  he  wanted  was  to  vitalize  the 
system  — to  throw  into  it  not  a Jewish,  but  a Christian 
feel  in  o; ; and  so  doinof,  he  mio-ht  continue  in  it  so  lono; 
as  it  would  hold  together.  And  so  it  was,  no  doubt, 
with  all  the  other  Apostles.  We  have  no  evidence 
that,  before  the  destruction  of  the  Jewish  polity,  there 
was  any  attem])t  made  by  them  to  overthrow  the  Jew- 
ish external  religion.  They  kept  the  Jewish  Sabbath, 
and  observed  the  Jewish  ritual.  One  of  them,  James, 
the  Christian  Ihshop  of  Jerusalem,  though  a Christian, 
was  even  among  the  Jews  remarkable  and  honorable 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


105 


for  the  regularity  with  which  he  observed  all  his  Jew- 
ish duties.  Now  let  us  apply  this  to  modern  duties. 
The  great  desire  among  men  now  appears  to  be  to  alter 
institutions,  to  have  perfect  institutions,  as  if  they  would 
make  perfect  men.  Mark  the  difference  between  this 
feeling  and  that  of  the  Apostle  : Let  every  man 

abide  in  the  same  calling  wherein  he  was  called.”  We 
are  called  to  be  members  of  the  Church  of  England  — 
what  is  our  duty  now  ? What  would  Paul  have  done? 
Is  this  our  duty  — to  put  such  questions  to  ourselves  as 
these?  Is  there  any  single,  particular  sentence  in 
the  service  of  my  Church  with  which  I do  not  entirely 
agree  ? Is  there  any  single  ceremony  with  which  my 
whole  soul  does  not  go  along  ? If  so,  then  it  is  my 
duty  to  leave  it  at  once?”  No,  my  brethren,  all  that 
we  have  to  do  is  to  say,  All  our  existing  institutions 
are  those  under  which  God  has  placed  us,  under  which 
we  are  to  mould  our  lives  according  to  His  will.”  It 
is  our  duty  to  vitalize  our  forms,  to  throw  into  them  a 
holier,  deeper  meaning.  My  Christian  brethren,  surely 
no  man  will  get  true  rest,  true  repose  for  his  soul  in 
these  days  of  controversy,  until  he  has  learned  the  wise 
significance  of  these  wise  words  — ^‘Let  every  man 
abide  in  the  same  calling  wherein  he  was  called.”  He 
will  but  gain  unrest,  he  will  but  disquiet  himself,  if  he 
says,  I am  sinning  by  continuing  in  this  imperfect 
system,”  if  he  considers  it  his  duty  to  change  his  call- 
ing if  his  opinions  do  not  agree  in  every  particular  and 
special  point  with  the  system  under  which  God  has 
placed  him. 

Lastly,  the  Apostle  applies  this  principle  civilly. 
And  you  will  observe  he  applies  it  to  that  civil  rela- 
tionship which,  of  all  others,  was  the  most  difficult  to 
harmonize  with  Christianity  — slavery.  Art  thou 
called,”  he  says,  ‘‘  being  a servant  ? Care  not  for  it.” 
Now,  in  considering  this  part  of  the  subject  we  should 
carry  along  with  us  these  two  recollections.  First,  we 
should  recollect  that  Christianity  had  made  much  way 
among  this  particular  class,  the  class  of  slaves.  No 
wonder  that  men  cursed  with  slavery  embraced  with 


103 


LEUTUKES  ON  THE  EriSl’LES 


joy  a religion  which  was  perpetually  teaching  the  worth 
and  dignity  of  the  human  soul,  and  declaring  that  rich 
and  poor,  peer  and  peasant,  master  and  slave,  were 
equal  in  the  sight  of  God.  And  yet,  great  as  this 
growth  was,  it  contained  within  it  elements  of  danger. 
It  was  to  be  feared,  lest  men,  hearing  for  ever  of 
brotherhood  and  Christian  equality,  should  be  tempted 
and  excited  to  throw  off  the  yoke  by  force^  and  compel 
their  masters  and  oppressors  to  do  them  right. 

The  other  fact  we  are  to  keep  in  remembrance  is  this 
— - that  all  this  occurred  in  an  age  in  which  slavery  had 
reached  its  worst  and  most  fearfuHbrm,  an  age  in  which 
the  emperors  were  accustomed,  not  unfrequently,  to 
feed  their  fish  Avith  living  slaves  ; when  captives  were 
led  to  fight  in  the  amphitheatre  with  wild  beasts  or  with 
each  other,  to  glut  the  Roman  appetite  for  blood  upon 
a Roman  holiday.  And  yet,  fearful  as  it  was,  the 
Apostle  says,  Care  not  for  it.’’  And,  fearful  as  war 
was  in  those  days,  when  the  soldiers  came  to  J ohn  to  be 
baptized,  he  did  not  recommend  them  to  join  some 
Peace  Association,”  to  use  the  modern  term,  he  sim- 
ply exhorted  them  to  be  content  with  their  wages. 
And  hence  we  understand  the  way  in  which  Chris- 
tianity was  to  work.  It  interferes  indirectly,  and  not 
directly,  with  existing  institutions.  No  doubt  it  will  at 
length  abolish  Avar  and  slavery,  but  there  is  not  one 
case  where  we  find  Christianity  interfering  with  insti- 
tutions, as  such.  Ea-cii  when  Onesimus  ran  away  and 
came  to  Paul,  the  Apostle  sent  him  back  to  his  master 
Philemon,  not  dissolving  the  connection  betAveen  them. 
And  then,  as  a consolation  to  the  servant,  he  told  him 
of  a hio:her  feeling  — a feeling  that  Avould  make  him 
free,  Avith  the  chain  and  shackle  upon  his  arm.  And  so 
it  was  possible  for  the  Christian  then,  as  it  is  now,  to  be 
])Ossessed  of  the  highest  liberty  even  under  tyranny. 
Jt  many  times  occurred  that  Christian  men  found  them- 
selves ])laced  under  an  unjust  and  tyrannical  govern- 
ment, and  com])elled  to  ])ay  unjust  taxes.  The  Son  of 
Man  showed  bis  freedom,  not  byrefusing,  but  by  paying 
them,  llis  glorious  liberty  could  do  so  Avithout  any 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


107 


feeling  of  degradation ; obeying  the  laws,  not  because 
they  were  right,  but  because  institutions  are  to  be  up- 
held with  cordiality. 

One  thino;  in  conclusion  we  have  to  observe.  It  is 

• ® • 

possible  from  all  this  to  draw  a most  inaccurate  conclu- 
sion. Some  men  have  spoken  of  Christianity  as  if  it 
was  entirely  indifferent  about  liberty  and  all  public 
questions  — as  if  with  such  things  as  these  Christianity 
did  not  concern  itself  at  all.'.  This  indifference  is  not 
to  be  found  in  the  Apostle  Paul.  While  he  asserts  that 
inward  liberty  is  the  only  true  liberty,  he  still  goes  on 
to  say,  If  thou  mayest  be  free,  use  it  rather.”  For  he 
well  knew  that  although  it  was  possible  for  a man  to 
be  a high  and  lofty  Christian,  even  though  he  were  a 
slave,  yet  it  was  not  probable  that  he  would  be  so. 
Outward  institutions  are  necessary  partly  to  make  a 
perfect  Christian  character  ; and  thus  Christianity  works 
from  what  is  internal  to  what  is  external.  It  gave  to 
the  slave  the  feeling  of  his  dignity  as  a man,  at  the  same 
time  it  gave  to  the  Christian  master  a new  view  of  his 
relation  to  his  slave,  and  tauo;ht  him  to  reo:ard  him 
“ not  now  as  a servant,  but  above  a servant,  a brother 
beloved.”  And  so  by  degrees  slavery  passed  into  freed 
servitude,  and  freed  servitude,  under  God’s  blessing, 
may  pass  into  something  else.  There  are  two  mistakes 
which  are  often  made  upon  this  subject ; one  is,  the 
error  of  supposing  that  outward  institutions  are  unne- 
cessary for  the  formation  of  character,  and  the  other, 
that  of  supposing  that  they  are  all  that  is  required  to 
form  the  human  soul.  If  we  understand  rightly  the 
duty  of  a Christian  man,  it  is  this  ; to  make  his  brethren 
free  inwardly  and  outwardly : first  inwardly,  so  that 
they  may  become  masters  of  themselves,  rulers  of  their 
passions,  having  the  power  of  self-rule  and  self-control  ; 
and  then  outwardly,  so  that  there  may  be  every  power 
and  opportunity  of  developing  the  inward  life ; in  t!ie 
language  of  the  prophet,  To  break  the  rod  of  the 
oppressor,  and  let  the  oppressed  go  free.” 


108 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XV. 

November  16,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  vii.  29-31.  — “But  this  I say,  brethren,  the  time  is 
short : it  remaineth,  that  both  they  that  have  wives,  be  as  though 
they  had  none.  — And  they  that  weep,  as  though  they  wept  not;  and 
they  that  rejoice,  as  though  they  rejoiced  not;  and  they  that  buy,  as 
though  they  possessed  not.  — And  tlT^y  that  use  this  world,  as  not 
abusing  it : for  the  fashion  of  this  world  passeth  away.” 

This  was  St.  Paul’s  memorable  decision,  in  reply  to 
certain  questions  proposed  to  him  by  the  Church  of 
Corinth,  on  the  subject  of  Unworldliness.  Christianity 
was  a new  thing  in  the  world,  and  circumstances  daily 
arose  in  which  it  became  a question  in  what  way  Chris- 
tianity was  to  be  applied  to  the  circumstances  of  ordi- 
nary daily  life. 

Christ  had  said  of  his  disciples,  They  are  not  of  the 
world.”  It  was  a question,  therefore,  — Can  a Chris- 
tian lawfully  enter  the  married  state  ? Can  he  remain 
a slave  and  be  a Christian  too  ? — May  he  make  certain 
worldly  compliances  ? — Should  a Christian  wife  re- 
main with  an  unchristian  husband  ? Here  was  the 
root  of  the  difficult  question  — What  is  Worldliness  ? 

Now,  observe  the  large,  broad  spirit  of  the  Apostle’s 
answer.  In  effect  he  says  you  may  do  all  this  — you 
may  enter  into  family  relationships,  and  yet  be  living  in 
expectation  of  Christ’s  coming.  If  you  are  a slave, 
care  not  for  it.  If  any  that  believe  not  invite  you  to  a 
feast,  and  you  are  disposed  to  go,  go  without  fear.  I 
cannot  judge  for  you,  you  must  judge  for  yourselves. 
All  that  I lay  down  is,  you  must  in  spirit  live  above, 
and  separate  from  the  love  of  earthly  things. 

Christianity  is  a s])irit  — it  is  a set  of  principles,  and 
not  a set  of  rules  ; it  is  not  a ma])i)ing  out  of  the  chart 
of  life,  witli  every  shoal  and  rock  marked,  and  the  ex- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


109 


act  line  of  tlie  ship’s  course  laid  down.  It  does  not 
say,  Do  not  go  to  this,  or,  See  that  you  abstain  from 
that.  It  gives  no  definite  rules  for  dress,  or  for  the 
expenditure  of  time  or  money.  A principle  is  an- 
nounced ; but  the  application  of  that  principle  is  left  to 
each  man’s  own  conscience. 

Herein  Christianity  differed  essentially  from  Judaism. 
Judaism  was  the  education  of  the  spiritual  child,  Chris- 
tianity that  of  the  spiritual  man.  You  must  teach  a 
child  by  rules  ; and,  as  he  does  not  know  the  reason  of 
them,  his  duty  consists  in  implicit  and  exact  obedience. 
But  a man  who  is  governed,  not  by  principles,  but  by 
maxims  and  rules,  is  a pedant,  or  a slave ; he  will  never 
be  able  to  depart  from  the  letter  of  the  rule,  not  even 
to  preserve  the  spirit  of  it.  Here  is  one  difference  be- 
tween the  Law  and  Gospel.  The  Law  lays  down  rules 
— “ Do  this,  and  live.”  The  Gospel  lays  down  prin- 
ciples. Thus  Judaism  said,  Forgive  seven  times  — 
exactly  so  much  ; Christianity  said.  Forgiveness  is  a 
boundless  spirit  — not  three  times,  nor  seven.  No  rule 
can  be  laid  down  but  an  infinite  one,  — seventy  times 
seven.  It  must  be  left  to  the  heart. 

So,  too,  the  Law  said,  — On  the  Sabbath-day  thou 
shalt  do  no  manner  of  work.”  The  spirit  of  this  was 
rest  for  man,  and  Pharisaism  kept  literally  to  the  rule. 
It  would  rather  that  a man  should  perish  than  that  any 
work  should  be  done,  or  any  ground  travelled  over,  on 
the  Sabbath-day,  in  saving  him.  Pharisaism  regarded 
the  day  as  mysterious  and  sacred  ; Christianity  pro- 
claimed the  day  to  be  nothing,  — the  spirit,,  for  which 
the  day  was  set  apart,  everything.  It  said,  The  Sab- 
bath was  made  for  man,  not  man  for  the  Sabbath.”  It 
broke  the  day  in  the  letter,  whenever  it  was  necessary 
in  the  true  spiritual  observance  of  the  day  to  advantage 
the  man. 

Unworldliness,  then,  does  not  consist  in  giving  up 
this  or  that ; but  in  a certain  inward  principle.  Had 
St.  Paul  been  one  of  those  ministers  who  love  to  be  the 
autocrats  of  their  congregations,  who  make  their  own 
limited  conceptions  the  universal  rule  of  right  and 


110 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


wrong,  lie  would  have  hailed  this  opportunity  of  de- 
ciding the  question  for  them.  But  he  walked  in  the 
light  and  liberty  of  the  Gospel  himself,  and  he  desired 
that  his  converts  should  do  the  same. 

This,  then,  is  our  subject  — 

I.  The  motives  for  Christian  unworldliness. 

II.  The  nature  of  that  unworldliness. 

The  first  motive  is,  the  shortness  of  time.  This  I 
say,  brethren,  the  time  is  short.”  That  mysterious 
word  time,”  which  is  a matter  of  sensation,  dependent 
on  the  flight  of  ideas,  may  be  long  to  one  person  and 
short  to  another.  The  span  of  life  granted  to  a summer 
butterfly  is  long  compared  with  that  granted  to  the 
ephemeron,  it  is  short  compared  with  the  duration  of  a 
cedar  of  Lebanon.  Relative  to  experience,  an  hour  is 
long  to  a child,  yet  a year  is  little  to  a man.  Short- 
ness, therefore,  is  a term  entirely  relative  to  something 
else. 

1.  It  is  relative  to  the  way  in  which  we  look  on 
time ; whether  it  be  regarded  from  before  or  after. 
Time  past  is  a dream,  time  to  come  seems  immense  ; 
the  lontrest  ni2!:ht,  which  seemed  as  if  it  would  never 
drag  through,  is  but  a speck  of  memory  when  it  is  gone. 
At  sixty-five,  a man  has  on  an  average  five  years  to 
live  ; yet  his  imagination  obstinately  attaches  solidity 
and  stability  to  those  five  coming  years,  though  the 
sixty-five  seem  but  a moment.  To  the  young  such 
words  as  these  are  often  perfectly  unmeaning;  life  to 
them  is  an  inexhaustible  treasure.  But  ask  the  old 
man  what  he  thinks  of  the  time  he  has  had  ; he  feels 
what  the  young  can  scarcely  be  brought  to  believe,  — 
that  time  future  may  seem  long,  but  time  past  is  as 
nothing.  Years  glide  swiftly,  though  hours  and  min- 
utes scarcely  seem  to  move. 

2.  Time  is  short  in  relation  to  o])portunitics.  Liter- 
ally these  words  mean — The  opportunity  is  com- 
pressed, — narrowed  in,”  — that  is,  every  season  has 
its  own  opportunity,  which  never  comes  back,  A 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


Ill 


chance  once  gone  is  lost  forever.  The  autumn  sun 
shines  as  brightly  as  that  of  spring,  but  the  seed  of 
spring  cannot  be  sown  in  autumn.  The  work  of  boy- 
hood cannot  be  done  in  manhood.  Time  is  short  — it 
is  opportunity  narrowed  in  ! 

The  chance  will  not  be  given  you  long.  Have  you 
learnt  the  lesson  of  yesterday  ? or  the  infinite  meaning 
of  to-day  ? It  has  duties  of  its  own ; they  cannot  be 
left  until  to-morrow.  To-morrow  will  bring  its  own 
work.  There  is  a solemn  feeling  in  beginning  any  new 
work ; in  the  thought,  I have  begun  this  to-day,  shall 
I ever  complete  it?  And  a voice  says,  Work  on,  for 
the  day  of  its  closing  is  unknown.”  The  true  con- 
sciousness of  this  life  is  as  a tombstone,  on  which  two 
dates  are  to  be  inscribed : the  day  of  birth  is  engraven 
at  full  length,  while  a blank  is  left  for  the  day  of  death. 

Born  on  such  a day;  died ? The  time  in  which 

that  blank  has  to  be  filled  up  is  short.  The  great  idea 
brought  out  by  Christianity  was  the  eternity  of  the 
soul’s  life.  With  this  idea  the  Corinthian  Church  was 
then  struo-alin^.  So  vast,  so  absorbino;  was  this  idea  to 
them,  that  there  was  ground  for  fear  lest  it  should  ab- 
sorb all  considerations  of  the  daily  life,  and  duties, 
which  surrounded  these  converts.  The  thouglit  arose, 
— Oh  ! in  comparison  of  that  great  hereafter,  this 
little  life  shrivels  into  nothingness  ! Is  it  worth  while 
to  attempt  to  do  anything  ? What  does  it  concern  us 
to  marry,  to  work,  to  rejoice,  or  to  weep  ? ” All  deep 
minds  have  felt  this  at  some  period  or  other  of  their 
career — all  earnest  souls  have  had  this  tempta- 
tion presented  to  them  in  some  form  or  other.  It  has 
come  perhaps,  when  we  were  watching  underneath  the 
quiet,  gliding  heavens,  or  perhaps  when  the  ticking  of 
a clock  in  restless,  midnight  hours,  made  us  realize  the 
thought  that  time  was  speeding  on  for  ever  — for  this 
life  beatino;  out  fast.  That  strange,  awful  thino;,  Time  ! 
sliding,  gliding,  fleeting  on — on  to  the  cataract;  and 
then  the  deep,  deep  plunge  down,  bearing  with  it  and 
swallowing  up  the  world  and  the  ages,  until  every  in- 
terest that  now  seems  so  great  and  absorbing  is  as  a 


112 


lp:(jtures  on  the  epistles 


straw  on  tlie  miglity  bosom  of  a flood.  Let  but  a man 
possess  his  soul  with  this  idea  of  Time,  and  then  un- 
worldliness will  be  the  native  atmosphere  he  breathes. 

The  second  motive  given  is  the  changefulness  of  the 
external  world.  The  fashion  of  this  world  passeth 
away.”  It  may  be  needful  here  to  remark,  that  the 
word  fashion  ” has  not  here  the  popular  meaning 
which  has  been  generally  assigned  to  it.  It  does  not 
refer  to  those  customs  and  conventionalities  which  vary 
in  diflFerent  nations  and  different  ages.  All  these  pass 
away : but  the  word  refers  here  to  all  that  is  external 
upon  earth,  all  that  has  form,  and  shape,  and  scenery  ; 
all  that  is  visible  in  contradistinction  to  that  which  is 
invisible. 

The  transitoriness  of  this  world  might  have  been 
purely  a matter  of  revelation.  Instead  of  gradual  and 
visible  decay,  God  might  have  arranged  his  cycles  so 
that  change  should  not  have  been  perceptible  within 
the  limits  of  a lifetime,  that  dissolution  should  have 
come  on  things  suddenly,  instead  of  by  slow  and 
gradual  steps.  Instead  of  that.  He  has  mercifully 
chosen  that  it  should  not  only  be  a matter  of  revela- 
tion, but  of  observation  also.  This  visible  world  is 
only  a form  and  an  appearance.  God  has  written 
decay  on  all  around  us.  On  the  hills,  which  are  ever- 
lasting only  in  poetry  ; their  outlines  changing  within 
the  memory  of  man.  On  the  sea-coast,  fringed  with 
shino;le.  Look  at  it  receding  fi^om  our  white  cliffs  ; its 
boundaries  are  not  what  they  were.  This  law  is  en- 
graven on  our  own  frames.  Even  in  the  infant  the  pro- 
gress of  dissolution  has  visibly  begun.  The  principle  of 
development  is  at  work,  and  development  is  but  the 
necessary  step  towards  decay.  There  is  a force  at 
work  in  everything  — call  it  what  you  will  — Life  or 
Death  : it  is  reproduction  out  of  decay.  The  outward 
form  is  in  a perpetual  flux  and  change. 

We  stand  amidst  the  ruins  of  other  days,  and  as 
they  mold der  before  our  eyes  they  tell  us  of  generations 
which  liave  mouldered  before  them,  and  of  nations 
wliich  liave  crossed  the  theatre  of  life  and  have  dis- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


113 


appeared.  We  join  in  the  gladness  of  the  baptism, 
and  the  years  roll  on  so  rapidly  that  we  are  almost 
startled  to  find  ourselves  standing  at  the  wedding.  But 
pass  on  a few  years  more,  and  the  young  heart  for 
which  there  was  so  much  gladness  in  the  future  has 
had  its  springs  dried  up.  He  belongs  to  a generation 
which  has  passed,  and  they  among  whom  he  lingers  feel 
as  if  he  had  lived  too  long.  And  then  he  drops  silently 
into  the  grave  to  make  way  for  others.  One  of  our 
deepest  thinkers  — a man  of  profoundest  observation, 
who  thought  by  means  of  a boundless  heart  — has 
told  us,  in  words  trite  and  familiar  to  us  all, 

“ All  tlie  world’s  a stage, 

And  all  the  men  and  women  merely  players  : 

They  have  their  exits  and  their  entrances; 

And  one  man  in  his  time  plays  many  parts.” 

Let  us  look  at  our  own  neighborhood.  Those  with 
whom  we  walked  in  youth  are  gone,  and  scattered  we 
know  not  where,  and  others  have  filled  their  places. 
We  are  developing  every  day  new  relationships  : every 
day  new  circumstances  are  occurring  which  call  upon 
us  to  act  promptly,  manfully,  equal  to  the  occasion  ; 
for  the  past  is  gone. 

Therefore  strive  to  be  unworldly.  Be  not  buried  in 
the  present.  To-day  becomes  yesterday  so  fast.  Mourn 
not  over  what  will  so  soon  be  irreparably  gone.  There 
is  nothing  worth  it. 

Again,  that  fashion  of  the  world  ” passes  away  in 
us.  Our  very  minds  change  — not  merely  the  objects 
which  make  the  impression  on  them.  The  impressions 
themselves  are  fleeting.  All  except  the  perpetually- 
repeated  sensations  of  eternity,  space,  time ; all  else 
alters.  There  is  no  affliction  so  sharp,  no  joy  so  bright, 
no  shock  so  severe,  — but  Time  modifies  and  cures  all. 
The  keenest  feeling  in  this  world  is  not  eternal.  If  it 
remains,  it  is  in  an  altered  form.  Our  memories  are 
like  monumental  brasses  : the  deepest  graven  inscription 
becomes  at  last  illegible.  Of  such  a world  the  Apostle 
seems  to  ask.  Is  this  a world  for  an  immortal  being  to 
waste  itself  upon  ? 

10* 


114 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


IT.  The  nature  of  Christian  unworldliness. 

Two  points  are  contained  in  this  last  verse.  1st.  The 
spirit  or  principle  of  unworldliness  ; to  use  this  world 
as  not  abusing  it.  2d.  The  application  of  that  princi- 
ple to  four  cases  of  life.  Domestic  relations.  — They 
that  have  wives  be  as  though  they  had  none.”  Joy.  — 
They  that  rejoice,  as  though  they  rejoiced  not.” 
Sorrow.  — They  that  weep,  as  though  they  wept 
not.”  The  acquisition  of  Property. — They  that 
buy,  as  though  they  possessed  not.” 

The  principle  is,  to  use  this  world  as  not  abusing 
it.”  Here  Christianity  stands  between  the  worldly 
spirit  and  the  narrow  religious  spirit.  The  worldly 
spirit  says,  Time  is  short ; take  your  fill;  live  while 
you  can.”  The  narrow  religious  spirit  says,  All  the 
pleasure  here  is  a snare  and  dangerous  ; keep  out  of  it 
altogether.”  In  opposition  to  this  narrow  spirit,  Chris- 
tianity says,  Use  the  world,”  and,  in  opposition  to 
the  worldly  spirit,  Do  not  abuse  it.  All  things  are 
yours.  Take  them,  and  use  them  ; but  never  let  them 
interfere  with  the  higher  life  which  you  are  called  on 
to  lead.  ‘ A man’s  life  consisteth  not  in  the  abundance 
of  the  things  that  he  possesses.’  ” 

It  is  therefore  a distinct  duty  to  use  life,  while  we 
are  here.  We  are  citizens  of  the  world,  we  may  not 
shrink  from  it.  We  must  share  its  duties,  dangers, 
sorrows,  and  joys.  Time  is  short ; therefore  opportu- 
nities are  so  much  the  more  valuable.  There  is  an 
infinite  value  stamped  upon  them.  Therefore,  use  the 
world.  But  then  it  is  a duty  equally  distinct,  to  live 
above  the  world.  Unworldliness  is  the  spirit  of  holding 
all  things  as  not  our  own,  in  the  perpetual  conviction 
that  they  will  not  last.  It  is  not  to  put  life  and  God’s 
lovely  world  aside  with  self-torturing  hand.  It  is  to 
have  the  world,  and  not  to  let  the  world  have  you ; to 
be  its  master,  and  not  its  slave.  To  have  Christ  hidden 
in  the  heart,  (‘aiming  all,  and  making  all  else  seem  by 
comparison  ])oor  and  small. 

d'liis  ])rinciple  he  a])plies,  first,  to  domestic  life, 
ddicy  that  have  wives  be  as  though  they  had  none.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


115 


The  idea  was  just  then  beginning  to  be  discussed, 
which  of  the  two  was  in  itself  the  higher  state,  and 
more  according  to  God’s  will,  the  single  or  the  married. 
In  after  ages  this  question  was  decided  in  a very  dis- 
astrous way ; for  it  was  taught  that  celibacy  was  the 
only  really  pure  and  angelic  life.  Marriage  was  re- 
garded as  earthly  and  sensual,  unfit  for  those  who  were 
to  serve  as  priests.  Now  here  observe  the  apostolic 
wisdom.  He  does  not  say  celibacy  is  the  saintly,  and 
marriage  the  lower  and  earthlier  state.  He  wisely  says, 
In  whatever  state  you  can  most  undistractedly  serve 
God,  that  is  the  unworldly  one  to  you.” 

This  is  a very  important  principle  for  consideration 
in  the  present  day.  There  is  a growing  tendency  to 
look  on  a life  of  contemplation  and  retirement,  of  sepa- 
ration from  all  earthly  ties, — in  a word,  asceticism, — 
as  the  higher  life.  Let  us  understand  that  God  has 
so  made  man,  that  ordinarily  he  who  lives  alone  leaves 
part  of  his  heart  uncultivated  ; for  God  made  man  for 
domestic  life.  He  who  would  be  wiser  than  his  Maker 
is  only  wise  in  appearance.  He  who  cultivates  one 
part  of  his  nature  at  the  expense  of  the  rest,  has  not 
produced  a perfect  man,  but  an  exaggeration.  It  is 
easy,  in  silence  and  solitude,  for  the  hermit  to  be  ab- 
stracted from  all  human  interests  and  hopes,  to  be  dead 
to  honor,  dead  to  pleasure.  But,  then,  the  sympathies 
which  make  him  a man  with  men  — how  shall  they 
grow  ? He  is  not  the  highest  Christian  who  lives  alone 
and  single,  but  he  who,  whether  single  or  married, 
lives  superior  to  this  earth ; he  who,  in  the  midst  of 
domestic  cares,  petty  annoyances,  or  daily  vexations, 
can  still  be  calm,  and  serene,  and  sweet.  That  is  real 
unworldliness  ; and,  in  comparison  with  this,  the  mere 
hermit’s  life  is  easy  indeed. 

The  second  case  is  unworldliness  in  sorrow.  ‘‘  They 
that  weep,  as  though  they  wept  not.” 

Observe,  the  Apostle  does  not  here  recommend  apa- 
thy, not  merely  a reason  of  prudence.  He  bids  them 
sorrow  ; but  not  as  they  who  have  no  hope.  He  does 
not  say,  Weep  not;”  but  weep,  as  though  they 
wept  not.” 


113 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


This  unworldliness  consists  of  two  parts  : — 

1st.  The  duty  and  the  riglit  of  sorrow.  “ Weep.” 
Christianity  does  not  sear  the  human  heart ; it  softens 
it.  They  who  forbid  grief  should,  to  be  consistent,  go 
further  and  forbid  affection,  for  grief  is  only  a state  of 
the  affections ; if  joy  be  felt  in  the  presence  of  the 
loved  object,  grief  must  be  felt  in  its  absence.  Chris- 
tianity destroys  selfishness,  makes  a man  quick  and 
sensitive  for  others,  and  alive  to  every  call  of  affection. 
Moreover,  dealing  with  infinite  things,  it  imparts  some- 
thing of  its  own  infinitude  to  every  feeling.  A Chris- 
tian is  a man  whose  heart  is  exquisitely  attuned  to  all 
utterances  of  grief.  Shall  he  not  feel  nor  mourn  ? His 
Master  wept  over  the  grave  of  friendship.  Tears  of 
patriotism  fell  from  His  eyes.  There  is  no  unmanliness 
in  shedding  tears  ; it  is  not  unchristian  to  yield  to  deep 
feeling.  W e may  admire  the  stern  old  Roman  heart ; 

but  we  must  not  forget  that  the  Roman  stoicism  is  not 
of  the  spirit  of  Christianity.  For  Christianity  says, 
Weep.” 

2d.  Christian  unworldliness  puts  limits  to  sorrow. 
“ As  though  they  wept  not : ” that  is,  as  though  God 
had  already  removed  their  grief.  Else  in  this  world  of 
sorrow  and  distress,  how  should  we  escape  despair  ? 
Familiarity  with  eternal  things  subdues  grief,  calms  and 
softens  it,  gives  it  a true  perspective.  Christianity  does 
not  say  to  our  hearts,  when  smarting  under  the  bitter 
pain  of  disappointment  or  loss,  It  is  nothing !”  but  it 
says,  ^Mt  is  less  than  you  had  supposed  it  to  be  ; you 
will,  sooner  or  later,  feel  that  it  is  easier  to  bear  than 
you  expected.”  This  elasticity  of  heart  receives  its 
only  true  warrant  from  Christianity.  Have  you  lost  a 
dear  relative  ? Well,  you  may  weep  ; but  even  while 
weeping,  Christ  comes  to  you  and  says,  Thy  brother 
shall  rise  again.” 

d'he  third  case  is  unworldliness  in  joy.  They  that 
rejoice,  as  though  they  rejoiced  not.”  Christ’s  religion 
is  no  grim,  ghastly  system  of  gloom.  God’s  world  is 
not  like  the  fablc‘d  place  of  punishment  Avhere  waters 
of  refreshment  rise  brimming  to  the  lips,  while  a stern 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


117 


prollibition  sounds  forth,  Touch  not,  taste  not,  handle 
not.”  You  will  observe,  the  joy  spoken  of  here  is  not 
spiritual,  but  earthly  joy  ; for,  if  it  had  been  spiritual 
joy,  the  Apostle  could  not  have  put  any  limitation  to 
it.  Therefore,  Christians  may  have  earthly  joy.  And 
they  that  rejoice  are  emphatically  the  young.  Let  the 
young  be  happy.  Health,  spirits,  youth,  society,  ac- 
complishments,— let  them  enjoy  these,  and  thank  God 
with  no  misgiving.  Let  there  be  no  half-remorseful 
sensations,  as  though  they  were  stolen  joys.  Christ 
had  no  sympathy  with  that  tone  of  mind  which  scowls 
on  human  happiness : His  first  manifestation  of  power 
was  at  a marriage  feast.  Who  would  check  the  swal- 
low’s flight,  or  silence  the  gush  of  happy  melody  which 
the  thrush  pours  forth  in  spring  ? Look  round  this 
beautiful  world  of  God’s : ocean  dimpled  into  myriad 
smiles  ; the  sky  a trembling,  quivering  mass  of  blue, 
thrilling  hearts  with  ecstasy;  every  tint,  every  form 
replete  with  beauty.  You  cannot,  except  wilfully,  mis- 
read its  meaning.  God  says,  Be  glad ! ” Do  not 
force  young,  happy  hearts  to  an  unnatural  solemnity, 
as  if  to  be  happy  were  a crime.  Let  us  hear  their 
loud,  merry,  ringing  laugh,  even  if  sterner  hearts  can 
be  glad  no  longer  ; to  see  innocent  mirth  and  joy  does 
the  heart  good. 

But  now,  observe,  everlasting  considerations  are  to 
come  in,  not  to  sadden  joy,  but  to  calm  it,  to  moderate 
its  transports,  and  make  even  worldly  joy  a sublime 
thing.  We  are  to  be  calm,  cheerful,  self-possessed  ; to 
sit  loose  to  all  these  sources  of  enjoyment,  masters  of 
ourselves. 

The  Apostle  lays  down  no  rule  respecting  worldly 
amusements.  He  does  not  say  you  must  avoid  this  or 
that,  but  he  lays  down  broad  principles.  People  often 
come  to  ministers,  and  ask  them  to  draw  a boundary 
line,  within  which  they  may  safely  walk.  There  is 
none.  It  is  at  our  peril  that  we  attempt  to  define  where 
God  has  not  defined.  We  cannot  say,  This  amuse- 
ment is  right,  and  that  is  wrong.”  And  herein  is  the 
greater  responsibility  laid  upon  all,  for  we  have  to  live 


118 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


out  principles  rather  than  maxims  ; and  the  principle 
here  is.  Be  unworldly. 

But,  remember,  if  tlie  enjoyments  which  you  permit 
yourselves  are  such,  that  the  thought  of  passing  time, 
and  coming  eternity,  presents  itself  as  an  intrusive 
thought,  which  has  no  business  there,  which  is  out  of 
place,  and  incongruous ; if  you  become  secularized, 
excited,  and  artificial ; if  there  is  left  behind  a craving 
for  excitement  which  can  only  be  slaked  by  more  and 
more  intense  excitement : then  it  is  at  your  own  peril 
that  you  say.  All  is  left  open  to  me,  and  permitted. 
Unworldly  you  mmt  become  — or  die.  Dare  not  to 
say  this  is  only  a matter  of  opinion  ; it  is  not  a matter 
of  opinion  ; it  is  a matter  of  conscience  ; and  to  God 
you  must  give  account  for  the  way  in  which  you  have 
been  dealing  with  your  soul. 

The  fourth  case  is  unworldliness  in  the  acquisition  of 
property.  They  that  buy,  as  though  they  possessed 
not.” 

Unworldliness  is  not  measured  by  what  you  possess, 
but  by  the  spirit  in  which  you  possess  it.  It  is  not 
said,  ‘‘Do  not  buy,”  but  rather  “Buy,  — possess.” 
You  may  be  a large  merchant,  an  extensive  landed 
proprietor,  a thriving  tradesman,  if  only  your  heart  be 
separate  from  the  love  of  these  earthly  things,  with 
God’s  love  paramount  there.  The  amount  of  property 
you  possess  does  not  affect  the  question  ; it  is  purely  a 
relative  consideration.  You  go  into  a regal  or  ducal 
palace,  and  perhaps,  unaccustomed  to  the  splendor 
which  you  see,  you  say,  “ All  this  is  worldliness.”  But 
the  poor  man  comes  to  your  house  ; your  dress,  simple 
as  it  is,  seems  magnificent  to  him  ; your  day’s  expen- 
diture would  keep  his  family  for  half  a year.  He  sees 
round  him  expensively  bound  books,  costly  furniture, 
pictures,  silver,  and  china  — a profusion  certainly  be- 
yond what  is  absolutely  necessary  ; and  to  him  this 
seems  worldliness  too.  If  the  monarch  is  to  live  as 
you  live,  why  should  not  you  live  as  the  laborer  lives  ? 
If  what  you  call  the  necessaries  of  life  be  the  measure 
of  the  rich  man’s  worldliness,  why  should  not  the  poor 


• TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


119 


man’s  test  gauge  yours?  No  ! we  must  take  another 
test  than  property  as  the  measure  of  worldliness. 
Christianity  forbids  our  condemning  others  ; men  may 
buy  and  possess.  Christianity  prescribes  no  law  for 
dress,  its  color,  its  fashion,  or  its  cost ; none  for  ex- 
penditure, none  for  possessions  : it  fixes  great  princi- 
ples, and  requires  you  to  be  unaffected,  unenslaved  by 
earthly  things  ; to  possess  them  as  though  you  possessed 
them  not.  The  Christian  is  one  who,  if  a shipwreck 
or  a fire  were  to  take  all  luxury  away,  could  descend, 
without  being  crushed,  into  the  valleys  of  existence. 
He  wears  all  this  on  the  outside,  carelessly,  and  could 
say,  My  all  was  not  laid  there.” 

In  conclusion,  let  there  be  no  censoriousness.  How 
others  live,  and  what  they  permit  themselves,  may  be 
a matter  for  Christian  charity,  but  it  is  no  matter  for 
Christian  severity.  To  his  own  master  each  must 
stand  or  fall.  Judge  not.  It  is  work  enough  for  any 
one  of  us  to  save  his  own  soul. 

Let  there  be  no  self-deception.  The  way  in  which 
I have  expounded  this  subject  gives  large  latitude,  and 
any  one  may  abuse  it  if  he  will,  — any  one  may  take 
comfort  to  himself,  and  say,  Thank  God,  there  are  no 
hard  restrictions  in  Christianity.”  Remember,  how- 
ever, that  Worldliness  is  a more  decisive  test  of  a man’s 
spiritual  state  than  even  Sin.  Sin  may  be  sudden,  the 
result  of  temptation,  without  premeditation,  yet  after- 
wards hated  — repented  of  — repudiated  — forsaken. 
But  if  a man  he  at  home  in  the  world’s  pleasure  and 
pursuits,  content  that  his  spirit  should  have  no  other 
heaven  but  in  these  things,  happy  if  they  could  but 
last  for  ever,  is  not  his  state,  genealogy,  and  character 
clearly  stamped  ? 

Therefore  does  St.  John  draw  the  distinction  — If 
any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate  with  the  Father  ; ” 
— but  If  any  man  love  the  world,  the  love  of  the 
Father  is  not  in  him.” 


120 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XVI. 

THE  DIFFERENCE  BETWEEN  CHRISTIAN  AND  SECULAR 
KNOWLEDGE. 

November  23,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  viii.  1-7.  — “ Now  as  touching  things  offered  unto 
idols,  we  know  that  we  all  have  knowledge.  Knowledge  puffeth  up, 
but  charity  edifieth.  — And  if  any  man  think  that  he  knoweth  any- 
thing, he  knoweth  nothing  yet  as  lie  ought  to  know.  — But  if  any 
man  love  God,  the  same  is  known  of  him  — As  concerning  therefore 
the  eating  of  those  things  that  are  offered  in  sacrifice  unto  idols,  we 
know  that  an  idol  is  nothing  in  the  world,  and  that  there  is  none 
other  God  but  one. — For  though  there  be  that  are  called  gods, 
whether  in  heaven  or  in  earth,  (as  there  be  gods  many  and  lords 
many,)  — But  to  us  there  is  but  one  God,  the  Father,  of  whom  are 
all  things,  and  we  in  him;  and  one  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  by  whom  are 
all  things,  and  we  by  him.  — Howbeit  there  is  not  in  every  man  that 
knowledge  : for  some  with  conscience  of  the  idol  unto  this  hour  eat 
it  as  a thing  offered  unto  an  idol;  and  their  conscience  being  weak 
is  defiled.” 


The  particular  occasion  of  this  chapter  was  a con- 
troversy going  on  in  the  Church  of  Cormth  respecting 
a Christian’s  right  to  eat  meat  which  had  been  sacri- 
ficed to  idols.  Now  the  question  was  this  : — It  was 
customary,  when  an  animal  was  sacrificed  or  consecra- 
ted to  a heathen  god,  to  reserve  one  portion  for  the 
priest,  and  another  for  the  worsliipper.  These  were 
either  used  in  the  feasts,  or  sold  like  common  meat  in 
the  shambles.  Now  among  the  Corinthian  converts 
some  had  been  Jews  and  some  heathens:  those  who 
had  been  Jews  would  naturally  shrink  from  eating  this 
meat,  their  previous  training  being  so  strongly  opposed 
to  idolatry,  while  those  Avho  had  been  heathen  would 
be  still  more  apt  to  shrink  from  the  use  of  this  meat 
than  were  the  Jews ; for  it  is  proverbial  that  none  are 
so  bitter  against  a system  as  those  who  have  left  it, 
])erhaj)S  for  the  siin])le  reason,  that  none  know  so  well 
as  thc‘y  the  caTors  of'  the  system  they  have  left.  There 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


121 


was  another  reason  which  made  the  heathen  converts 
shrink  from  eating  this  meat,  and  this  was,  that  they 
were  unable  to  divest  themselves  of  the  idea  that  the 
deities  they  had  once  adored  were  living  entities  ; they 
had  ceased  to  bow  before  them,  but  long  habit  had 
made  them  seem  living  personalities : they  looked  on 
them  as  demons.  Hence,  the  meat  of  an  animal  con- 
secrated while  living  to  an  idol  appeared  to  them  pol- 
luted, accursed,  contaminated  — a thing  only  fit  to  be 
burnt,  and  utterly  unfit  for  food.  This  state  of  feeling 
may  be  illustrated  by  the  modern  state  of  belief  with 
reference  to  apparitions.  Science  has  banished  an  ex- 
press faith  in  their  existence,  yet  we  should,  probably, 
be  surprised  did  we  know  how  much  credulity  on  this 
subject  still  remains.  The  statute  book  is  purged  from 
the  sentences  on  witchcraft,  and  yet  a lingering  feeling 
remains  that  it  may  still  exist  in  power.  Christianity 
had  done  the  same  for  the  heathen  deities.  They  were 
dethroned  as  gods,  but  they  still  existed,  to  the  imagi- 
nation, as  beings  of  a lower  order  — as  demons  who 
were  malicious  to  men  and  enemies  to  God.  Hence, 
meat  offered  to  them  was  regarded  as  abominable,  as 
unfit  for  a Christian  man  to  eat ; he  was  said  to  have 
compromised  his  Christianity  by  doing  so.  On  the 
other  hand,  there  were  men  of  clearer  views  who  main- 
tained in  the  language  quoted  by  St.  Paul  ■ — An  idol 
is  nothing  in  the  world  ” — a nonentity,  a name,  a 
phantom  of  the  imagination : it  cannot  pollute  the 
meat,  since  it  is  nothing,  and  has  no  reality.  Therefore, 
they  derided  the  scruple  of  the  weaker  brethren  and 
said,  ‘‘We  will  eat.”  Now  all  this  gave  rise  to  the 
enunciation  of  a great  principle  by  the  Apostle  Paul. 
In  laying  it  down,  he  draws  a sharp  distinction  between 
Secular  and  Christian  Knowledge,  and  also  unfolds  the 
Law  of  Christian  Conscience. 

It  is  to  the  first  of  these  that  I shall  claim  your  at- 
tention to-day. 

A great  controversy  is  going  on  at  the  present  time 
in  the  matter  of  Education.  One  party  extols  the 
value  of  instruction,  the  other  insists  loudly  that  secular 


122 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISIT.ES 


education  without  religion  is  worse  than  useless.  By 
secular  education  is  meant  instruction  in  such  branches 
as  arithmetic,  geography,  grammar,  and  history,  and 
by  religious  education,  instruction  in  the  Bible  and  the 
catechism.  But  yon  will  see  at  once  that  the  Knowl- 
edge, of  which  St.  Paul  spoke  slightingly,  was  much 
higher  than  any,  or  all  of  these,  lie  spoke  of  instruc- 
tion not  merely  in  history,  geography,  or  grammar,  but 
instruction  in  the  Bible,  the  catechism,  and  the  articles, 
as  worthless,  without  training  in  Humility  and  Charity. 
This  was  the  secular  knowledge  he  speaks  of,  for  you 
will  perceive  that  he  treats  knowledge  of  very  impor- 
tant religious  matters  as  secular,  and  rates  it  very  low 
indeed.  He  said  mere  knowledge  is  worth  little ; but 
then  by  knowledge,  he  meant  not  merely  knowledge 
without  Christian  doctrine,  but  knowledge  without 
Love.  Many  a person  now  zealous  on  this  point  of 
education  would  be  content  if  only  the  Bible,  without 
note  or  comment,  were  taught.  But  St.  Paul  would 
not  have  been  content,  he  would  have  calmly  looked 
on  and  said.  This  is  also  secular  knowledge.  This, 
too,  is  the  knowledge  which  puffeth  up ; but  Christian 
knowledge  is  the  Charity  which  alone  buildeth  up  an 
heavenly  spirit. 

Let  me  try  to  describe  more  fully  this  secular  knowl- 
edge. 

It  is  Knowledge  without  Humility.  — For  it  is  not  so 
much  the  department  of  knowledge,  as  it  is  the  spirit 
in  which  it  is  acquired,  which  makes  the  difference 
between  secular  and  Christian  knowledge.  It  is  not  so 
much  the  thing  known,  as  the  way  of  knowing  it. 

If  any  man  think  that  he  knoweth  anything,  he 
knoweth  nothing  yet  as  he  ought  to  know.’’  As  he 
he  oimlit  to  know.”  That  single  word  ^^as”  is  the 
j)oint  of  the  sentence  ; for  it  is  not  what  to  know,  but 
how  to  know,  wliich  includes  all  real  knowledge.  The 
greatest  of  modern  ]:)hiloso])liers,  and  the  greatest  of 
modern  historians,  Humboldt  and  Niebidir,  were  both 
eminently  humble  men.  So,  too,  you  will  find  the 
real  talent  among  mechani(‘s  is  generally  united  to  great 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


123 


humility.  Whereas  the  persons  you  would  select  as 
puft'ed  up  by  knowledge  are  those  who  have  a few 
religious  maxims,  and  a few  shallow  religious  doctrines. 
There  are  two  ways,  therefore,  of  knowing  all  things. 
One  is,  that  of  the  man  who  loves  to  calculate  how  far 
he  is  advanced  beyond  others ; the  other,  that  of  the 
man  who  feels  how  infinite  knowledge  is,  how  little  he 
knows,  and  how  deep  the  darkness  of  those  who  know 
even  less  than  he  : who  says,  not  as  a cant  phrase,  but 
in  unaffected  sincerity,  I know  nothing,  and  do  go 
into  the  grave.”  That  knowledge  will  never  puff*  up. 

Again,  it  is  Liberty  without  Reverence.  — These 
men,  to  whom  the  Apostle  writes  in  rebuke,  were  free 
from  many  superstitions.  An  idol,  they  said,  was 
nothing  in  the  world.  But  although  freed  from  the 
worship  of  false  gods,  they  had  not  therefore  adored 
the  true  God.  For  it  is  not  merely  freedom  from 
superstition  which  is  worship  of  God,  but  it  is  loving 
dependence  on  Him  ; the  surrender  of  self.  If  any 
man  love  God,  the  same  is  known  of  Him.”  Observe 
it  is  not  said,  he  shall  know  God,”  but  shall  be 
known  of  Him;”  that  is,  God  shall  acknowledge  the 
likeness  and  the  identity  of  spirit,  and  will  come 
unto  him  and  make  His  abode  with  him.”  There  is 
much  of  the  spirit  of  these  Corinthians  existing  now. 
Men  throw  off*  what  they  call  the  trammels  of  educa- 
tion, false  systems,  and  superstitions,  and  then  call 
themselves  free : they  think  it  a grand  thing  to  rever- 
ence nothing  ; all  seems  to  them  either  kingcraft  or 
priestcraft,  and  to  some  it  is  a matter  of  rejoicing  that 
they  have  nothing  left  either  to  respect  or  worship. 
There  is  a recent  work  in  which  the  writer  has  tried 
to  overthrow  belief  in  God,  the  soul,  and  immortality, 
and  proclaims  this  liberty  as  if  it  were  a gospel  for  the 
race  ! My  brother  men,  this  is  not  high  knowledge. 
It  is  a great  thing  to  be  free  from  mental  slavery,  but 
suppose  you  are  still  a slave  to  your  passions  ? It  is 
a great  thing  to  be  emancipated  from  superstition,  but 
suppose  you  have  no  religion?  From  all  these  bonds 
of  the  spirit  Christianity  has  freed  us,  says  St.  Paul, 


124 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


but  then  it  has  not  left  us  merely  free  from  these,  it 
has  bound  us  to  God.  Tliouoh  there  be  gods  many, 
yet  to  us  there  is  but  one  God.”  Tlie  true  freedom  from 
superstition  is  free  service  to  religion  : the  real  emanci- 
pation from  false  gods  is  reverence  for  the  true  God. 
For  high  knowledge  is  not  negative,  but  positive;  it  is 
to  be  freed  from  the  fear  of  the  Many,  in  order  to  adore 
and  love  the  One.  And  not  merely  is  this  the  only 
real  knowledge,  but  no  other  knowledo:e  ‘‘  buildetli 
up  ” the  soul.  It  is  all  well  so  long  as  elasticity  of 
youth  and  health  remain.  Then  the  pride  of  intellect 
sustains  us  strongly ; but  a time  comes  when  we  feel 
terribly  that  the  Tree  of  Knowledge  is  not  the  Tree  of 
Life.  Our  souls  without  God  and  Christ  enter  deeper 
and  deeper  into  the  fearful  sense  of  the  hollowness  and 
darkness,  the  coldness,  and  the  death,  of  a spirit  sepa- 
rate from  love.  He  that  increaseth  knowledge  in- 
creaseth  sorrow.”  Separate  from  love,  the  more  we 
know,  the  profounder  the  mystery  of  life  becomes  ; the 
more  dreary  and  the  more  horrible  becomes  existence. 
I can  conceive  of  no  dying  hour  more  awful  than  that 
of  one  who  has  aspired  to  know  instead  of  to  love^  and 
finds  himself  at  last  amidst  a world  of  barren  facts  and 
lifeless  theories,  loving  none  and  adoring  nothing. 

Again,  it  is  Comprehension  without  Love  to  man.  — 
You  will  observe,  these  Corinthians  had  got  a most 
clear  conception  of  what  Christianity  was.  An  idol,” 
said  they,  is  nothing  in  the  world.”  There  is  none 
other  God  but  One,  and  there  is  but  one  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  by  whom  are  all  things,  and  we  by  Him.” 
Well,  said  the  Apostle  Paul,  and  what  signifies  your 
j)rofession  of  that,  if  you  look  down  with  supreme  con- 
tempt on  your  ignorant  brothers,  who  cannot  reach  to 
tliese  sublime  contemplations  ? What  reality  is  there 
in  your  religion,  if  you  look  at  men  struggling  in 
dai’kiiess,  and  are  content  to  congratulate  yourselves, 
that' you  are  in  theliglit?  Wlieii  heathen,  they  had 
loved  these  men  ; now  tliat  they  were  Cliristians  they 
des])ised  them  ! Was  their  Christianity,  tlien,  gain  or 
loss  ? Did  they  rise  in  the  scale  of  manhood  or  fall  ? 


TO  THE  CORINTHIAXS. 


125 


Slaves  — idolaters  — superstitious  ” — alas ! is  that  all 
they,  or  we,  have  learnt  to  say  ? Is  that  all  our  Chris- 
tianity has  given  us  ? 

Some  of  us  have  been  taught  that  knowledge  such 
as  this  is  not  advance,  but  retrogression.  We  have 
looked  on  our  shelves  laden  with  theology  or  philoso- 
phy, and  have  enumerated  the  systems  which  have  been 
mastered  ; and  we  have  felt  how  immeasurably  superior 
in  the  sight  of  God  is  some  benighted  Romanist,  who 
believes  in  transubstantiation  and  purgatory,  but  who 
has  gone  about  doing  good,  or  some  ignorant,  narrow 
religionist,  who  has  sacrificed  time  and  property  to 
Christ,  to  the  most  correct  theologian  in  whose  heart 
there  is  no  love  for  his  fellow-men.  For  breadth  of 
view  is  not  breadth  of  heart ; and  hence  the  substance 
of  Christianity  is  love  to  God  and  love  to  man.  Hence, 
too,  the  last  of  the  Apostles,  when  too  weak  to  walk  to 
the  assemblies  of  the  Church,  was  borne  there,  a feeble 
old  man,  by  his  disciples,  and  addressing  the  people  as 
he  spread  abroad  his  hands,  repeated  again  and  again  — 
Love  one  another ; ” and  when  asked  why  he  said 
ever  the  same  thing,  replied,  Because  there  is  nothing 
else ; attain  that,  and  you  have  enough.”  Hence,  too, 
it  is  a precious  fact,  that  St.  Paul,  the  Apostle  of  Lib- 
erty, whose  burning  intellect  expounded  the  whole 
philosophy  of  Christianity,  should  have  been  the  one 
to  say  that  dCnowledge  is  nothing  compared  to  Charity, 
nay,  worse  than  nothing  without  it : should  have  been 
the  one  to  declare  that  Knowledge  shall  vanish  away, 
but  Love  never  faileth.” 


128 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XVII. 

November  30,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  viii.  8-13.  But  meat  commendeth  us  not  to  God: 
for  neither,  if  we  eat,  are  we  the  better;  neither,  if  we  eat  not,  are 
"we  the  worse.  — But  take  heed  lest  by  any  means  this  liberty  of  yours 
become  a stumbling-block  to  them  that  are  weak.  — For  if  an^;  man 
see  thee  which  hast  knowledge,  sit  at  meat  in  the  idol’s  temple,  shall 
not  the  conscience  of  him  which  is  weak  be  emboldened  to  eat  those 
things  which  are  offered  to  idols; — And  through  thy  knowledge 
shall  the  weak  brother  perish  for  whom  Christ  died  ? — But  when 
ye  sin  so  against  the  brethren  and  wound  their  weak  conscience,  ye 
sin  against  Christ.  — Wherefore  if  meat  make  my  brother  to  offend, 

I will  eat  no  flesh  while  the  world  standeth,  lest  I make  my  brother 
to  offend/* 

We  have  already  divided  this  chapter  into  two 
branches  — - the  former  portion  of  it  containing  the  dif- 
ference between  Christian  knowledge  and  secular  knowl- 
edge, and  the  second  portion  containing  the  apostolic 
exposition  of  the  law  of  Christian  conscience.  The 
first  of  these  we  endeavored  to  expound  last  Sunday, 
but  it  may  be  well  briefly  to  recapitulate  the  principles 
of  that  discourse  in  a somewhat  different  form.  Corinth, 
as  we  all  know  and  remember,  was  a city  built  on  the 
sea  coast,  having  a large  and  free  communication  with 
all  foreign  nations  ; and  there  was  also  within  it,  and 
going  on  amongst  its  inhabitants,  a free  interchange  of 
thought,  and  a vivid  power  of  communicating  the 
pliilosopliy  and  truths  of  those  days  to  each  other. 
Now  it  is  plain  that  to  a society  in  such  a state,  and  to 
minds  so  educated,  the  Gospel  of  Christ  must  have 
presented  a peculiar  attraction,  presenting  itself  to  them 
as  it  did,  as  a law  of  Christian  liberty.  And  so,  in 
Corinth  the  gosjiel  had  free  course  and  was  glorified,’’ 
and  was  received  with  great  joy  by  almost  all  men,  and 
))y  minds  o(‘  all  classes  and  all  sects  ; and  a large  num- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


127 


ber  of  these  attached  themselves  to  the  teaching  of  the 
Apostle  Paul  as  the  most  accredited  expounder  of  Chris- 
tianity — the  royal  law  of  liberty.’’  But  it  seems,  from 
what  we  read  in  this  Epistle,  that  a large  number  of 
these  men  received  Christianity  as  a thing  intellectual, 
and  that  alone  — and  not  as  a thing  which  touched  the 
conscience,  and  swayed  and  purified  the  affections. 
And  so,  this  liberty  became  to  them  almost  all  — they 
ran  into  sin  or  went  to  extravagance  — they  rejoiced  in 
their  freedom  from  the  superstitions,  the  ignorances,  and 
the  scruples  which  bound  their  weaker  brethren ; but 
had  no  charity  — none  of  that  intense  charity  which 
characterized  the  Apostle  Paul,  for  those  still  struggling 
in  the  delusions  and  darkness  from  which  they  them- 
selves were  free.  More  than  that,  they  demanded  their 
right,  their  Christian  liberty  of  expressing  their  opinions 
in  the  church,  merely  for  the  sake  of  exhibiting  the 
Christian  graces  and  spiritual  gifts  which  had  been 
showered  upon  them  so  largely ; until  by  degrees  those 
very  assemblies  became  a lamentable  exhibition  of  their 
own  depravity,  and  led  to  numerous  irregularities, 
which  we  find  severely  rebuked  by  the  Apostle  Paul. 
Their  women,  rejoicing  in  the  emancipation  which  had 
been  given  to  the  Christian  community,  laid  aside  the 
old  habits  of  attire  which  had  been  consecrated  so  long 
by  Grecian  and  Jewish  custom,  and  appeared  with 
their  heads  uncovered  in  the  Christian  community. 
Still  further  than  that,  the  Lord’s  Supper  exhibited  an 
absence  of  all  solemnity,  and  seemed  more  a meeting 
for  licentious  gratification,  where  one  was  hungry,  and 
another  was  drunken  ” — a place  in  which  earthly 
drunkenness,  the  mere  enjoyment  of  the  appetites,  had 
taken  the  place  of  Christian  charity  towards  each  other. 
And  the  same  feeling  — this  love  of  mere  liberty  — 
liberty  in  itself  — manifested  itself  in  many  other  direc- 
tions. Holding  by  this  freedom,  their  philosophy 
taught  that  the  body,  that  is,  the  flesh,  was  the  only 
cause  of  sin  : that  the  soul  was  holy  and  pure  ; and  that, 
therefore,  to  be  free  from  the  body  would  be  entire, 
perfect,  Christian  emancipation.  And  so  came  in  that 


128 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


strange  wrong  doctrine,  exhibited  in  Corinth,  where 
immortality  was  taught  separate  from  and  in  opposition 
to  the  doctrine  of  the  Kesurrection.  And  afterwards 
they  went  on  with  their  conclusions  about  liberty,  to 
maintain  that  the  body,  justified  by  the  sacrifice  of 
Christ,  was  no  longer  capable  of  sin,  and  that,  in  the 
evil  which  Avas  done  by  the  body,  the  soul  had  taken 
no  part.  And  therefore  sin  Avas  to  them  but  as  a name, 
from  which  a Christian  conscience  was  to  be  freed  alto- 
gether. So  that  when  one  of  their  number  had  fallen 
into  grievous  sin,  and  had  committed  fornication,  such 
as  Was  not  so  much  as  named  among  the  Gentiles,’’  so 
far  from  being  humbled  by  it,  they  were  puffed  up,” 
as  if  they  were  exhibiting  to  the  world  an  enlightened, 
true,  perfect  Christianity  — separate  from  all  prejudices. 
To  such  a society  and  to  such  a state  of  mind  the 
iVpostle  Paul  preached,  in  all  their  length,  breadth,  and 
fulness,  the  humbling  doctrines  of  the  Cross  of  Christ. 
He  taught  that  knowledge  was  one  thing  — that  charity 
was  another  thing  ; that  knowledge  puffeth  up,  but 
charity  buildeth  up.”  He  reminded  them  that  love 
Avas  the  perfection  of  knowledge.  In  other  Avords,  his 
teaching  came  to  this  : there  are  two  kinds  of  knowl- 
edge ; the  one  the  knoAvledge  of  the  intellect,  the  other 
the  knoAvledge  of  the  heart.  Intellectually,  God  neA^er 
can  be  known  : He  must  be  knoAvn  by  Love  — for,  if 
any  man  love  God,  the  same  is  known  of  Him.”  Here, 
then,  Ave  have  arriA^ed,  in  another  way,  at  precisely  the 
same  conclusion  at  AAdiich  we  arrived  last  Sunday. 
Here,  are  tAvo  kinds  of  knoAvledge,  secular  knoAvledge 
and  Cliristian  knoAvledge  ; and  Christian  knoAvledge  is 
this  — to  know  by  Love. 

Let  us  noAv  consider  the  remainder  of  the  chapter, 
which  treats  of  the  law  of  Christian  conscience.  You 
Avill  observe  that  it  divides  itself  into  tAvo  branches  — 
tlie  first  containing  an  exposition  of  the  law  itself,  and 
the  second,  the  Christian  applications  which  flow  out  of 
this  exposition. 

1.  d'lie  Avny  in  which  the  Apostle  expounds  the  law 
ol‘  Christian  conscience  is  this  ; — Guilt  is  contracted 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


129 


by  the  soul,  in  so  far  as  if  sins  against  and  transgresses 
the  law  of  God,  by  doing  that  which  it  believes  to  be 
wrong  : not  so  much  what  is  wrong,  as  what  appears  to 
it  to  be  wrong.  This  is  the  doctrine  distinctly  laid 
down  in  the  7th  and  8th  verses.  The  Apostle  tells  the 
Corinthians  — these  strong-minded  Corinthians  — that 
the  superstitions  of  their  weaker  brethren  were  unques- 
tionably wrong.  Meat,”  he  says,  commendeth  us  not 
to  God  ; for  neither  if  we  eat,  are  we  the  better  ; neither 
if  we  eat  not,  are  we  the  worse.”  He  then  tells  them 
further,  that  there  is  not  in  every  man  that  knowl- 
edge ; for  some,  Avith  conscience  of  the  idol,  eat  it  as  a 
thing  offered  unto  an  idol.”  Here,  then,  is  an  igno- 
rant, mistaken,  ill-informed  conscience  ; and  yet  he  goes 
on  to  tell  them  that  this  conscience,  so  ill-informed,  yet 
binds  the  possessor  of  it : and  their  conscience  being 
weak,  is  defiled.”  For  example  ; there  could  be  no 
harm  in  eating  the  flesh  of  an  animal  that  had  been 
offered  to  an  idol  or  false  god  ; for  a false  god  is 
nothing,  and  it  is  impossible  for  it  to  have  contracted 
positive  defilement  by  being  offered  to  that  Avhich  is  a 
positive  and  absolute  negation.  And  yet  if  any  man 
thought  it  wrong  to  eat  such  flesh,  to  him  it  was  wrong  ; 
for  in  that  act  there  would  be  a deliberate  act  of  trans- 
gression — a deliberate  preference  of  that  which  was 
mere  enjoyment,  to  that  which  was  apparently,  though  it 
may  be  only  apparently,  sanctioned  by  the  law  of  God. 
And  so  it  would  carry  with  it  all  the  disobedience,  all 
the  guilt,  and  all  the  misery  which  belongs  to  the  doing 
of  an  act  altogether  wrong ; or,  as  St.  Paul  expresses  it, 
the  conscience  Avould  become  defiled. 

Here,  then,  we  arrive  at  the  first  distinction  — the  dis- 
tinction between  absolute  and  relative  right  and  wrong. 
Absolute  right  and  absolute  wrong,  like  absolute  truth, 
can  each  be  but  one  and  unalterable  in  the  sight  of  God. 
The  one  absolute  right — the  charity  of  God  and  the 
sacrifice  of  Christ  — this,  from  eternity  to  eternity 
must  be  the  sole  measure  of  eternal  right.  But  human 
right  or  human  wrong,  that  is,  the  merit  or  demerit  of 
any  action  done  by  any  particular  man,  must  be  meas- 


130 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


urecl,  not  by  that  absolute  standard,  but  as  a matter 
relative  to  his  particular  circumstances,  the  state  of  the 
age  in  which  he  lives,  and  his  own  knowledge  of  right 
and  wrong.  For  we  come  into  this  world  with  a moral 
sense  ; or,  to  speak  more  Christiaidy,  with  a conscience. 
And  yet  that  will  tell  us  but  very  little  distinctly.  It 
tells  us  broadly  that  which  is  right  and  that  which  is 
wrong,  so  that  every  child  can  understand  this.  That 
charity  and  self-denial  are  right  — this  we  see  recog- 
nized in  almost  every  nation.  But  the  boundaries  of 
these  two  — when  and  how  far  self-denial  is  right  — 
what  are  the  bounds  of  charity  — this  it  is  for  dif- 
ferent circumstances  yet  to  bring  out  and  determine. 
And  so,  it  will  be  found  that  there  is  a different  stand- 
ard among  different  nations  and  in  different  ages. 
That,  for  example,  which  was  the  standard  among 
the  Israelites  in  the  earlier  ages,  and  before  their  settle- 
ment in  Canaan,  was  very  different  from  the  higher 
and  truer  standard  of  right  and  wrong  recognized  by 
the  later  prophets.  And  the  standard  in  the  third  and 
fourth  centuries  after  Christ,  was  truly  and  unques- 
tionably an  entirely  different  one  from  that  recognized 
in  the  nineteenth  century  among  ourselves.  Let  me 
not  be  mistaken.  I do  not  say  that  right  and  wrong 
are  merely  conventional,  or  merely  chronological  or 
geographical,  or  that  they  vary  with  latitude  and  longi- 
tude. I do  not  say  that  there  ever  was  or  ever  can  be 
a nation  so  utterly  blinded  and  perverted  in  its  moral 
sense  as  to  acknowledge  that  which  is  wrong  — seen 
and  known  to  be  wrong  — as  right ; or,  on  the  other 
hand,  to  profess  that  which  is  seen  and  understood  as 
right,  to  be  wrong.  But  what  I do  say  is  this  : that 
the  form  and  aspect  in  which  different  deeds  appear,  so 
vary,  that  there  will  be  for  ever  a change  and  altera- 
tion in  men’s  opinions,  and  that  which  is  really  most 
generous  may  seem  -most  base,  and  that  which  is  really 
most  base  may  a})pear  most  generous.  So,  for  example, 
as  I liave  already  said,  there  are  two  things  universally 
recognized  — recognized  as  right  by  every  man  whose 
(conscience  is  not  absolutely  perverted — charity  and 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


131 


self-denial.  The  charity  of  God,  the  sacrifice  of  Christ 
— these  are  the  two  grand,  leading  principles  of  the 
Gospel ; and  in  some  form  or  other  you  will  find  these 
lying  at  the  roots  of  every  profession  and  state  of  feel- 
ing in  almost  every  age.  But  the  form  in  which  these 
appear,  will  vary  with  all  the  gradations  which  are  to 
be  found  between  the  lowest  savage  state  and  the 
highest  and  most  enlightened  Christianity. 

For  example:  in  ancient  Israel  the  law  of  love  was 
expounded  thus  : — Tliou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor, 
and  hate  thine  enemy.”  Among  the  American  In- 
dians and  at  the  Cape,  the  only  homage  perchance 
given  to  self-denial  was  the  strange  admiration  given 
to  that  prisoner  of  war  who  bore  with  unflinching  for- 
titude the  torture  of  his  country’s  enemies.  In  ancient 
India  the  same  principle  was  exhibited,  but  in  a more 
strange  and  perverted  manner.  The  homage  there 
given  to  self-denial,  self-sacrifice,  was  this  — that  the 
highest  form  of  religion  was  considered  to  be  that 
exhibited  by  the  devotee  who  sat  in  a tree  until  the 
birds  had  built  their  nests  in  his  hair  — until  his  nails, 
like  those  of  the  King  of  Babylon,  had  grown  like 
birds’  talons  — until  they  had  grown  into  his  hands  — 
and  he  became  absorbed  into  the  Divinity.  We  will 
take  another  instance,  and  one  better  known.  In  an- 
cient Sparta  it  was  the  custom  to  teach  children  to 
steal.  And  here  there  would  seem  to  be  a contradic- 
tion to  our  proposition  — here  it  would  seem  as  if  right 
and  wrong  were  matters  merely  conventional ; for 
surely  stealing  can  never  be  anything  but  wrong.  But 
if  we  look  deeper,  we  shall  see  that  there  is  no  contra- 
diction here.  It  was  not  stealing  which  was  admired  ; 
the  child  was  punished  if  the  theft  was  discovered  ; but 
it  was  the  dexterity  which  was  admired,  and  that  be- 
cause it  was  a warlike  virtue,  necessary,  it  may  be,  to 
a people  in  continual  rivalry  with  their  neighbors.  It 
was  not  that  honesty  was  despised  and  dishonesty  es- 
teemed, but  that  honesty  and  dishonesty  were  made 
subordinate  to  that  which  appeared  to  them  of  higher 
importance,  namely,  the  duty  of  concealment.  And 


132 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ETISTI.ES 


SO  we  come  back  to  the  principle  wliich  we  laid  down 
at  first.  In  every  age,  among  all  nations,  the  same 
broad  principle  remaiiivS ; but  the  a])plication  of  it 
varies.  The  conscience  may  be  ill-informed,  and  in 
this  sense  only  are  right  and  wrong  conventional  — 
varying  with  latitude  and  longitude,  depending  upon 
chronology  and  geography. 

The  principle  laid  down  by  the  Apostle  Paul  is  this  : 
— A man  will  be  judged,  not  by  the  abstract  law  of 
God,  not  by  the  rule  of  absolute  right,  but  much  rather 
by  the  relative  law  of  conscience.  This  he  states  most 
distinctly — looking  at  the  question  on  both  sides.  That 
which  seems  to  a man  to  be  right  is,  in  a certain  sense, 
right  to  him  ; and  that  which  seems  to  a man  to  be 
wrong,  in  a certain  sense  is  wrong  to  him.  For  exam- 
ple : he  says,  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans  (v.  14), 
that  sin  is  not  imputed  when  there  is  no  law ; ” in 
other  words,  if  a man  does  not  reallv  know  a thing  to 
be  wrong,  there  is  a sense  in  which,  if  not  right  to 
him,  it  ceases  to  be  so  wrong  as  it  would  otherwise  be. 
With  respect  to  the  other  of  these  sides,  however,  the 
case  is  still  more  distinct  and  plain.  Here,  in  the  judg- 
ment which  the  Apostle  delivers  in  the  parallel  chapter 
of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans  (the  14tli),  he  says,  I 
know,  and  am  persuaded  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  that  there 
is  nothing  unclean  of  itself ; but  to  him  that  esteemeth 
anything  to  be  unclean,  to  him  it  is  unclean.”  In  other 
words,  whatever  may  be  the  abstract  merits  of  the 
question  — however  in  God’s  jurisprudence  any  par- 
ticular act  may  stand  — to  you,  thinking  it  to  be  wrong, 
it  manifestly  is  wrong,  and  your  conscience  will  gather 
round  it  a stain  of  guilt  if  you  do  it.  In  order  to  un- 
derstand this  more  fully,  let  us  take  a few  instances. 
There  is  a difference  between  truth  and  veracity.  Ve- 
racity — mere  veracity  — is  a small,  poor  thing.  Truth 
is  something  greater  and  higher.  Veracity  is  merely 
the  (‘orresixjudence  between  some  ])articidar  statement 
and  I’acts  ; truth  is  the  corres[)ondence  between  a man’s 
whole  soul  and  reality.  It  is  possible  for  a man  to  say 
that  whicli,  unknown  to  him,  is  false  ; and  yet  he  may 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


133 


be  true  ; because,  if  deprived  of  truth,  he  is  deprived 
of  it  unwillingly.  It  is  possible,  on  the  other  hand,  for 
a man  to  utter  veracities,  and  yet  at  the  very  time 
that  he  is  uttering  those  veracities  to  be  false  to  himself, 
to  his  brother,  and  to  his  God.  One  of  the  most  signal 
instances  of  this  is  to  be  seen  in  the  Book  of  Job. 
Most  of  what  Job’s  friends  said  to  him  were  veracious 
statements.  Much  of  what  Job  said  himself  was  un- 
veracious  and  mistaken.  And  yet  those  veracities  of 
theirs  were  so  torn  from  all  connection  with  fact  and 
truth,  that  they  became  falsehoods ; and  they  were,  as 
has  been  said,  nothing  more  than  orthodox  liars  ” in 
the  sight  of  God.  On  the  other  hand,  Job,  blundering 
perpetually,  and  falling  into  false  doctrine,  was  yet  a 
true  man  — searching  for  and  striving  after  the  truth  ; 
and  if  deprived  of  it  for  a time,  deprived  of  it  with  all 
his  heart  and  soul  unwillingly.  And,  therefore,  it  was 
that  at  last  the  Lord  appeared  out  of  the  whirlwind,  to 
confound  the  men  of  mere  veracity,  and  to  stand  by 
and  support  the  honor  of  the  heartily  true. 

Let  us  apply  the  principle  further.  It  is  a matter  of 
less  importance  that  a man  should  state  true  views,  than 
that  he  should  state  views  truly.  We  will  put  this  in 
its  strongest  form.  Unitarianism  is  false — Trinitarian- 
ism  is  true.  But  yet,  in  the  sight  of  God,  and  with 
respect  to  a man’s  eternal  destinies  hereafter,  it  would 
surely  be  better  for  him  earnestly,  honestly,  truly,  to 
hold  the  doctrines  of  Unitarianism,  than  in  a cowardly 
or  indifferent  spirit,  or  influenced  by  authority,  or  from 
considerations  of  interest,  or  for  the  sake  of  lucre,  to 
hold  the  doctrines  of  Trinitarianism.  For  instance  : — 
Not  many  years  ago,  the  Church  of  Scotland  was 
severed  into  two  great  divisions,  and  gave  to  this  age 
a marvellous  proof  that  there  was  still  amongst  us  the 
power  of  living  faith — when  five  hundred  ministers  gave 
up  all  that  earth  holds  dear  — position  in  the  church 
they  had  loved ; friendships  and  affections  formed,  and 
consecrated  by  long  fellowship,  in  its  communion  ; and 
almost  their  hopes  of  gaining  a livelihood  — rather  than 
assert  a principle  wdiich  seemed  to  them  to  be  a false 
.12 


134 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


one.  Now,  my  brethren,  surely  the  question  in  such  a 
case  for  us  to  consider  is  not  tliis,  merely  — whether 
of  the  two  sections  held  the  abstract  right  — held  the 
principle  in  its  integrity — -but  surely  far  rather,  this: 
who  on  either  side  was  true  to  the  light  within,  true 
to  God,  true  to  the  truth  as  God  had  revealed  it  to  his 
soul. 

Now,  it  is  precisely  upon  this  principle  that  we  are 
enabled  to  indulge  a Christian  hope  that  many  of  those 
who  in  ancient  times  were  persecutors,  for  example, 
may  yet  be  absolved  at  the  bar  of  Christ.  Nothing 
can  make  persecution  right  — it  is  wrong,  essentially, 
eternally  wrong  in  the  sight  of  God.  And  yet,  if  a 
man  sincerely  and  assuredly  thinks  that  Christ  has  laid 
upon  him  a command  to  persecute  with  fire  and  sword, 
it  is  surely  better  that  he  should,  in  spite  of  all  feelings 
of  tenderness  and  compassion,  cast  aside  the  dearest 
affections  at  the  supposed  command  of  his  Redeemer, 
than  that  he  should,  in  mere  laxity  and  tenderness,  turn 
aside  from  what  seems  to  him  to  be  his  duty.  At  least, 
this  appears  to  be  the  opinion  of  the  Apostle  Paul. 
He  tells  us,  that  he  was  a blasphemer  and  a perse- 
cutor and  injurious,’’  that  “ he  did  many  things  con- 
trary to  the  name  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,”  that  being 
exceedingly  mad  against  the  disciples,  he  persecuted 
them  even  unto  strange  cities.”  But  he  tells  us  further, 
that  ^‘for  this  cause  he  obtained  mercy,  because  he  did 
it  ignorantly  in  unbelief.”  Now,  take  a case  precisely 
opposite.  In  ancient  times  the  Jews  did  that  by  which 
it  appeared  to  them  that  they  would  contract  defilement 
and  guilt  — they  spared  the  lives  of  the  enemies  which 
they  had  taken  in  battle.  Brethren,  the  eternal  law 
is,  that  charity  is  right,  and  that  law  is  eternally  right 
which  says,  Thou  shalt  love  thine  enemy.”  And 
had  the  dews  acted  u])on  this  principle,  they  would  have 
done  well  to  spare  their  enemies : but  they  did  it  think- 
iiio;  it  to  be  wroim,  transo-ressino;  that  law  which  com- 
marided  them  to  slay  their  idolatrous  enemies,  not  from 
generosity,  but  in  cupidity  — not  from  charity,  but 
from  lax  zeal.  And  doing  thus,  the  act  was  altogether 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


135 


2.  Such  is  the  Apostle’s  exposition  of  the  law  of 
Christian  conscience.  Let  us  now,  in  the  second  place, 
consider  the  applications,  both  of  a personal  and  of  a 
public  nature,  which  arise  out  of  it. 

The  first  application  is  a personal  one.  It  is  this  : — 
Do  what  seems  to  you  to  be  right : it  is  only  so  that 
you  will  at  last  learn  by  the  grace  of  God  to  see  clearly 
what  is  right.  A man  thinks  within  himself  that  it  is 
God’s  law  and  God’s  will  that  he  should  act  thus  and 
.thus.  There  is  nothing  possible  for  us  to  say  — there 
is  no  advice  for  us  to  give,  — but  this,  You  must  so 
act.”  He  is  responsible  for  the  opinions  he  holds,  and 
still  more  for  the  way  in  which  he  arrived  at  them  — 
whether  in  a slothful  and  selfish,  or  in  an  honest  and 
truth-seeking  manner ; but  being  now  his  soul’s  con- 
victions, you  can  give  no  other  law  than  this  — You 
must  obey  your  conscience.”  For  no  man’s  conscience 
gets  so  seared  by  doing  what  is  wrong  unknowingly, 
as  by  doing  that  which  appears  to  be  wrong  to  his 
conscience.  The  Jews’  consciences  did  not  get  seared 
by  their  slaying  the  Canaanites,  but  they  did  become 
seared  by  their  failing  to  do  wliat  appeared  to  them  to 
be  right.  Therefore,  woe  to  you  if  you  do  what  others 
think  right,  instead  of  obeying  the  dictates  of  your 
own  conscience ; woe  to  you  if  you  allow  authority,  or 
prescription,  or  fashion,  or  influence,  or  any  other  hu- 
man thing,  to  interfere  with  that  awful  and  sacred 
thing  — your  own  responsibility.  Every  man,”  said 
the  Apostle,  must  give  an  account  of  himself  to 
God.” 

The  second  application  of  this  principle  has  reference 
to  others.  No  doubt,  to  the  large,  free,  enlightened 
mind  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  all  these  scruples  and  super- 
stitions must  have  seemed  mean,  trivial,  and  small 
indeed.  It  was  a matter  to  him  of  far  less  importance 
that  truth  should  be  established^  than  that  it  should  be 
arrived  at  truly — a matter  of  far  less  importance,  even, 
that  right  should  be  done,  than  that  right  should  be 
done  rightly.  Conscience  was  far  more  sacred  to  him 
than  even  Liberty  — it  was  to  him  a prerogative  far 


136 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


more  precious  to  assert  the  rights  of  Christian  con- 
science, tlian  to  magnify  tlie  privileges  of  Christian 
liberty.  The  scruple  may  be  small  and  foolish,  but  it 
may  be  impossible  to  uproot  the  scruple  witliout  tearing 
up  the  feeling  of  the  sanctity  of  conscience,  and  of 
reverence  for  the  law  of  God,  associated  with  this 
scruple.  And  therefore  the  Apostle  Paul  counsels 
these  men  to  abridge  their  Christian  liberty,  and  not  to 
eat  of  those  things  which  had  been  sacrificed  to  idols, 
but  to  have  compassion  upon  the  scruples  of  their  weaker 
brethren.  And  this,  for  two  reasons  : — The  first  of 
these  is  a mere  reason  of  Christian  feeling.  It  might 
cause  exquisite  pain  to  sensitive  minds  to  see  those 
things  which  appeared  to  them  to  be  wrong,  done  by 
Christian  brethren.  Now  you  may  take  a parallel  case. 
It  may  be,  if  you  will,  mere  superstition  to  bow  at  the 
name  of  Jesus.  It  may  be,  and  no  doubt  is,  founded 
upon  a mistaken  interpretation  of  that  passage  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Philippians  (ii.  10),  which  says,  that  at 
the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  shall  bow.”  But  there 
are  many  congregations  in  which  this  has  been  the 
long-established  rule,  and  there  are  many  Christians 
who  would  feel  pained  to  see  such  a practice  discon- 
tinued — as  if  it  implied  a declension  from  the  reverence 
due  to  ‘‘that  name  which  is  above  every  name.”  Now, 
what  in  this  case  is  the  Christian  duty  ? Is  it  this  — to 
stand  upon  our  Christian  liberty  ? Or  is  it  not  rather 
this  — to  comply  with  a prejudice  which  is  manifestly  a 
harmless  one,  rather  than  give  pain  to  a Christian 
brother  ? Take  another  case.  It  may  be  a mistaken 
scruple,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that  it  causes  much  pain 
to  many  Christians  to  see  a carriage  used  on  the  Lord^s 
day.  But  you,  with  higher  views  of  the  spirit  of  Chris- 
tianity, who  know  that  the  Sabbath  was  made  for 
man,  and  not  man  for  the  Sabbath”  — who  can  enter 
more  deeply  into  the  truth  taught  by  our  blessed  Lord, 
that  every  day  is  to  be  dedicated  to  Him  and  conse- 
crated to  His  service — upon  the  high  principle  of 
Christian  liberty,  you  can  use  your  carriage  — you  can 
exercise  your  libei-ty.  But  if  there  are  Christian 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


137 


brethren  to  whom  this  would  give  pain  — then  I hum- 
bly, but  most  earnestly,  ask  you  — What  is  the  duty 
here  ? Is  it  not  this  — to  abridge  your  Christian  liberty 

— and  to  go  through  rain,  and  mud,  and  snow,  rather 
than  give  pain  to  one  Christian  conscience  ? I will 
give  one  more  instance.  The  words,  and  garb,  and 
customs  of  that  sect  of  Christians  called  Quakers,  may 
be  formal  enough ; founded  no  doubt,  as  in  the  former 
case,  upon  a mistaken  interpretation  of  a passage  in 
the  Bible.  But  they  are  at  least  harmless ; and  have 
long  been  associated  with  the  simplicity,  and  benevo- 
lence, and  devout  humbleness  of  this  body  of  Christians 

— the  followers  of  one  who,  three  hundred  years  ago, 
set  out  upon  the  glorious  enterprise  of  making  all  men 
friends.  Now,  would  it  be  Cliristian,  or  would  it  not 
rather  be  somethino;  more  than  un-Christian  — would 
it  not  also  be  gross  rudeness  and  coarse  unfeelingness 
to  treat  such  words,  and  habits,  and  customs,  with  any- 
thing but  respect  and  reverence  ? 

Further  : the  Apostle  enjoined  this  duty  of  abridging 
their  Christian  liberty  upon  the  Corinthian  converts, 
not  merely  because  to  indulge  it  might  give  pain  to 
others,  but  also  because  it  might  even  lead  their  breth- 
ren into  sin.  For,  if  any  man  should  eat  of  the  flesh 
offered  to  an  idol,  feeling  himself  justified  by  his  con- 
science, it  were  well:  but  if  any  man,  overborne  by 
authority  or  interest,  were  to  do  this,  not  according  to 
conscience,  but  against  it,  there  would  be  a distinct  and 
direct  act  of  disobedience  — a conflict  between  his  sense 
of  right,  and  the  gratification  of  his  appetites  or  the 
powder  of  influence  ; and  then  his  compliance  would  as 
much  damage  his  conscience  and  moral  sense  as  if  the 
act  had  been  wrong  in  itself. 

Now,  in  the  personal  application  of  these  remarks, 
there  are  three  things  which  I have  to  say.  The  first 
is  this  : — Distinguish,  I pray  you,  between  this  tender- 
ness for  a brother’s  conscience  and  mere  time-serving. 
This  same  Apostle,  whom  we  here  see  so  gracefully 
giving  way  upon  the  ground  of  expediency  when  Cdiris- 
tian  principles  were  left  entire,  was  the  same  who  stood 
12*  . 


138 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


firm  and  strong  as  a rock,  when  anytliing  was  demanded 
which  trenched  upon  Christian  principle.  Wlien  some 
required,  as  a matter  of  necessity  for  salvation,  that 
these  converts  should  be  circumcised,  the  Apostle  says 

— To  whom  we  gave  place  by  subjection,  no,  not  for 
an  hour  ! ” It  was  not  indifference  — it  was  not  cow- 
ardice — it  was  not  the  mere  love  of  peace,  purchased 
by  the  sacrifice  of  principle,  that  prompted  this  counsel 

— but  it  was  Christian  love  — that  delicate  and  Chris- 
tian love  which  dreads  to  tamper  with  the  sanctities  of 
a brother’s  conscience. 

The  second  thing  we  have  to  say  is  this  — that  this 
abridgment  of  their  liberty  is  a duty  more  especially 
incumbent  upon  all  who  are  possessed  of  influence. 
There  are  some  men,  happily  for  themselves  we  may 
say,  who  are  so  insignificant  that  they  can  take  their 
course  quietly  in  the  valleys  of  life,  and  who  can  exer- 
cise the  fullest  Christian  liberty  without  giving  pain  to 
others.  But  it  is  the  price  which  all,  who  are  possessed 
of  influence,  must  pay  — that  their  acts  must  be  meas- 
ured, not  in  themselves,  but  according  to  their  influ- 
ence on  others.  So,  my  Christian  brethren,  to  bring 
this  matter  home  to  every-day  experience  and  common 
life,  if  the  landlord  uses  his  authority  and  influence  to 
induce  his  tenant  to  vote  against  his  conscience,  it  may 
be  he  has  secured  one  voice  to  the  principle  which  is 
right,  or,  at  all  events,  to  that  which  seemed  to  him  to 
be  right : but  he  has  gained  that  single  voice  at  the 
sacrifice  and  expense  of  a brother’s  soul.  Or,  again  — 
if  for  the  sake  of  ensuring  personal  politeness  and  atten- 
tion, the  rich  man  puts  a gratuity  into  the  hand  of  a 
servant  of  some  company  which  has  forbidden  him  to 
receive  it,  he  gains  the  attention,  he  ensures  the  polite- 
ness, but  he  gains  it  at  the  sacrifice  and  expense  of  a 
man  and  a Christian  brother. 

The  last  remark  which  we  have  to  make  is  this:  — 
How  possible  is  it  to  mix  together  the  vigor  of  a mas- 
culine and  manly  intellect  with  the  tenderness  and 
charity  wliic'h  is  taught  by  the  gospel  of  Christ ! No 
man  ever  breathed  so  freely,  when  on  earth,  the  air  and 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


139 


atmosphere  of  heaven  as  the  Apostle  Paul  — no  man 
ever  soared  so  high  above  all  prejudices,  narrowness, 
littlenesses,  scruples,  as  he : and  yet  no  man  ever  bound 
himself  as  Paul  bound  himself  to  the  ignorance,  the 
scruples,  the  prejudices  of  his  brethren.  So  that,  what 
in  other  cases  was  infirmity,  imbecility,  and  superstition, 
gathered  round  it  in  his  case  the  pure,  high  spirit  of 
Christian  charity  and  Christian  delicacy.  And  now, 
out  of  the  writings,  and  sayings,  and  deeds  of  those  who 
loudly  proclaim  the  rights  of  man  ” and  the  rights 
of  liberty,”  match  us  if  you  can  with  one  sentence  so 
sublime,  so  noble,  — one  that  will  so  stand  at  the  bar 
of  God  hereafter,  — as  this  single  glorious  sentence  of 
his,  in  which  he  asserts  the  rights  of  Christian  con- 
science above  the  claims  of  Christian  liberty  — Where- 
fore if  meat  make  my  brother  to  offend,  I will  eat  no 
flesh  while  the  world  standeth,  lest  I make  my  brother 
to  offend.” 


140 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  ETI3TT,E3 


LECTURE  XVIII. 

December  7,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  ix.  — “ Am  I not  an  apostle  am  I not  free  ? have  I 
not  seen  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  ? are  not  ye  my  work  in  the  Lord?  — 
If  I be  not  an  apostle  unto  others,  yet  doubtless  I am  to  you  : for  the 
seal  of  mine  apostleship  are  ye  in  the  Lord . — Mine  answer  to  them 
that  do  examine  me  is  this,  — ^ Have  we  not  power  to  eat  and  to  drink  ? 

— Have  we  not  power  to  lead  about  a sistor,  a wife,  as  well  as  other 
apostles,  and  as  the  brethren  of  the  Lord,  and  Cephas  ? — Or  I only 
and  Barnabas,  have  not  we  power  to  forbearworking  ? — Who  goeth 
a warfare  any  time  at  his  own  charges?  who  planteth  a vineyard, 
and  eateth  not  of  the  fruit  thereof?  or  who  feedeth  a flock,  and  eateth 
not  of  the  milk  of  the  flock  ? — Say  I these  things  as  a man  ? or  saith 
not  the  law  the  same  also  ? — For  it  is  written  in  the  law  of  Moses, 
Thou  shalt  not  muzzle  the  mouth  of  the  ox  that  treadeth  out  the  corn. 
Doth  God  take  care  for  oxen  ? — Or  saith  he  it  altogether  tor  our 
sakes  ? For  our  sakes,  no  doubt,  this  is  written  : that  h:  that  plow- 
eth  should  plow  in  hope;  and  that  he  that  thresheth  in  hope  should 
be  partaker  of  his  hope.  — If  we  have  sown  unto  you  spiritual  things, 
is  it  a great  thing  if  we  shall  reap  your  carnal  things  ? — If  others 
be  partakers  of  this  power  over  you,  are  not  we  rather  ? Neverthe- 
less we  have  not  used  this  power;  but  sutler  all  things,  lest  we  should 
hinder  the  gospel  of  Christ.  — Do  ye  not  know  that  they  which  min- 
ister about  holy  things  live  of  the  things  of  the  temple?  and  they 
which  wait  at  the  altar  are  partakers  with  the  altar  ? — Even  so  hath 
the  Lord  ordained  that  they  which  preach  the  gospel  should  live  of 
the  gospel.  — But  I have  used  none  of  these  things  : neither  have  I 
written  these  things,  that  it  should  be  so  done  unto  me  : for  it  were 
better  for  me  to  die,  than  that  any  man  should  make  my  glorying 
void.  — For  though  I preach  the  gospel,  I have  nothing  to  glory  of : 
for  necessity  is  laid  upon  me;  yea,  woe  is  unto  me,  if  I preach  not 
the  gospel  ! For  if  I do  this  thing  willingly,  I have  a reward  : but 
if  against  my  will,  a dispensation  of  the  gospel  is  committed  unto 
me.  — What  is  my  reward  then?  Verily  that,  when  I preach  the 
gospel,  I may  make  the  gospel  of  Christ  without  charge,  that  I abuse 
not  my  power  in  the  gospel.  — For  though  I be  free  from  all  men, 
yet  have  1 made  myself  servant  unto  all,  that  I miglitgain  the  more. 

— And  unto  the  Jews  I became  as  a Jew,  that  I might  gain  the 
Jews;  to  them  that  are  under  the  law,  as  under  the  law,  that  I 
might  gain  tliem  that  are  under  the  law;  — To  them  that  are  with- 
out law,  as  without  law,  (being  not  without  law  to  God,  but  under 
the  law  to  Christ,)  that  I might  gain  them  that  are  without  law.  — 
To  the  weak  became  I as  weak,  th.it  I might  gain  the  weak  : 1 am 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


141 


made  all  things  to  all  men,  that  I might  by  all  means  save  some.  — 
And  this  I do  for  the  gospel’s  sake,  that  I might  be  partaker  thereof 
with  you.  — Know  ye  not  that  they  which  run  in  a race  run  all,  but 
one  receiveth  the  prize  ? So  run,  that  ye  may  obtain.  — And  every 
man  that  striveth  for  the  mastery  is  temperate  in  all  things.  Now 
they  do  it  to  obtain  a corruptible  crown;  but  we  an  incorruptible.  — 
I therefore  so  run,  not  as  uncertainly;  so  fight  I,  not  as  one  that 
beateth  the  air  : — But  I keep  under  my  body,  and  bring  it  into 
subjection  : lest  that  by  any  means,  when  I have  preached  to 
others,  I myself  should  be  a castaway.” 


This  last  verse  is  nnintelligible,  except  taken  in 
connection  with  the  preceding  part  of  the  chapter.  It 
is  commonly  quoted  in  the  Calvinistic  Controversy,  to 
prove  or  disprove  the  possibility  of  the  believer’s  final 
fall.  It  is  contended  by  some  that  St.  Paul  was  not 
certain  of  salvation,  and  that  it  was  possible,  after  all 
his  labor  in  the  cause  of  Christ,  he  might  be  a cast- 
away. In  reality,  the  passage  has  nothing  whatever  to 
do  with  this.  The  word  here  translated  castaway,”  is 
literally  reprobate,”  — that  which  being  tested  fails. 

Reprobate  silver  shall  men  call  them  : ” St.  Paul 
says,  “ Lest  after,  when  I have  preached  to  others,  I 
myself,  when  tried  by  the  same  standard,  should  fail.” 
We  shall  find  that  this  will  become  more  intelligible  by 
the  exposition  of  this  chapter. 

In  the  last  chapter  St.  Paul  had  laid  down  the  prin- 
ciple that  it  was  good  to  avoid  all  injuries  to  the  scruples 
and  conscientious  superstitions  of  weaker  brethren. 
When  Christian  liberty  permits  indulgence  — very 
often  Christian  love  says,  Abstain.”  As  in  the  sen- 
tence, “ Wherefore  if  meat  make  my  brother  to  offend, 
I will  eat  no  flesh  while  the  world  standeth,  lest  I make 
my  brother  to  offend.” 

Let  us,  however,  understand  the  Apostle’s  principle, 
so  as  not  to  misrepresent  or  exaggerate  it.  Distinguish 
this  principle  of  avoiding  offence  to  conscientious 
scruples,  from  yielding  to  all  scruples.  You  are  not, 
in  order  to  avoid  hurting  another’s  conscience,  to  act 
against  your  own.  Nor  are  you  to  yield  or  concede  in 
a case  Avhere  his  conscience  or  scruples  recommend 
something  wrong.  In  this  case  conscience  required 


142 


LECT.URES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


the  Corinthians  to  do  what  was  evidently  harmless  ; 
abstaining  from  eating  meats  was  an  act  of  reverence 
to  God,  and  was  accepted  by  Him  because  done  in 
faith.  So  in  the  instances  alleged  in  the  last  lecture  — 
the  dress  of  the  Quakers  — bowing  at  the  name  of 
Jesus  — the  abstinence  from  a cavil  in  these  matters  is 
accepted  just  as  the  sacrifices  were.  For  you  would 
be  pleased  if  an  ignorant  person  were  to  present  you 
with  something  you  did  not  value,  but  on  which,  be- 
cause he  thought  you  did  value  it,  he  had  spent  time 
and  pains.  To  you  it  is  worthless  intrinsically,  but  as 
an  evidence  of  affection  it  is  invaluable. 

So  in  the  case  of  fasting  — abstinence  on  certain  days 
is  well  pleasing  to  God,  if  done  in  faith.  And  it  would 
be  rude  and  coarse,  harsh  and  unloving,  to  sneer  at  such 
acts,  or  to  tempt  men  wlio  believe  them  to  be  sacred 
duties,  by  ridicule  or  example,  to  give  them  up. 

But  if  something  were  done  which  is  not  only  not 
commanded,  but  forbidden,  it  is  no  Christian  duty  to 
connive.  You  would  bow  at  the  name  of  Jesus  be- 
cause, where  it  was  universally  the  custom,  you  might 
hurt  the  feelings  of  your  brethren  by  refusing  to  do  so  : 
but  you  wmuld  not  bow  at  the  passing  of  the  host,  be- 
cause that  would  imply  a belief  in  a downright  false- 
hood ; and,  therefore,  as  you  could  not  avoid  insulting 
a Romish  prejudice,  you  would  hold  it  to  be  your  duty 
to  absent  yourself  from  the  most  magnificent  ceremony, 
or  from  the  sublimest  music  that  ever  thrilled  through 
St.  Peter’s. 

Again,  let  us  note  another  exception.  Practices 
which  in  themselves  are  harmless  may  be  withstood, 
because  of  their  consequences  at  peculiar  times.  Thus 
St.  Paul  was  gentle  about  trifles,  whereas  the  Reform- 
ers were  stiff*.  lie  yielded  to  Jewish  prejudices  about 
sacrifices,  because  they  implied  reverence  to  a truth. 
Tliey  were  unyielding  in  the  matter  of  Romish  rites 
and  forms  — trifling  enough  in  themselves  — because 
they  implied  adherence  to  false  and  dangerous  errors. 
And  sOf  too,  St.  Paul  at  one  time  circumcised  Timothy 
because  it  implied  symbolic  holiness.  At  another  he 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


143 


refused  to  circumcise  Titus,  because  it  was  then  and 
there  reckoned  essential  to  salvation,  and  for  that  reason 
insisted  on. 

This,  then,  was  St.  Paul’s  principle.  But  to  this 
teaching  an  objection  might  be  raised.  Some  may  say. 
It  is  easy  enough  to  advise  : fine  doctrine  this  of  con- 
science and  tenderness  to  weaker  brethren  — conscien- 
tious prejudices.  Does  the  Apostle  practise  what  he 
preaches  ? Or  is  it  merely  a fine  sentiment  ? Does  he 
preach  to  others  — himself  being  a castaway  — that  is, 
one  who  being  tested  is  found  wanting  ? 

The  whole  of  the  ninth  chapter  bears  on  this  ques- 
tion. It  is  an  assertion  of  his  own  consistency.  He 
proves  that  he  submitted  himself  for  love’s  sake  to 
restriction,  to  which  he  was  not  in  absolute  duty  bound. 

I.  The  first  part  of  this  chapter  is  occupied  in  proving 
his  right  to  certain  privileges. 

II.  His  salutary  abstinence  from  many  of  them. 

I.  The  privileges  to  which  he  had  a right  were 
domestic  solaces  and  ministerial  maintenance.  Have 
we  not  power  to  lead  about  a sis  ter- wife,  that  is,  a wife 
who  was  one  of  the  Christian  sisterhood  ? Have  we 
not,  Barnabas  and  I,  power  to  forbear  working  ? The 
right  to  the  first  of  these  privileges  he  proves  by  the 
position  of  the  other  Apostles.  Cephas  and  others 
were  married  men.  His  right  to  the  second,  that  of 
maintenance,  he  proves  by  his  Apostleship.  Am  I 
not  an  Apostle  ? Am  I not  free  ? ” that  is,  not  com- 
pelled to  labor. 

The  apostolic  or  ministerial  right,  he  bases  on  four 
arguments.  1.  By  a principle  universally  recognized 
in  human  practice.  A king  warring  on  behalf  of  a 
people,  wars  at  their  charge  — a planter  of  a vineyard 
expects  to  eat  of  the  fruit  — a shepherd  is  entitled  to 
eat  of  the  milk  of  the  flock.  All  who  toil  for  the  good 
of  others  derive  an  equivalent  from  them.  Gratuitous 
devotion  of  life  is  nowhere  considered  obligatory.  2. 
By  a principle  implied  in  a scriptural  particular  enact- 


144 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ment,  Thou  shalt  not  muzzle  the  ox  that  treadeth 
out  tlie  corn.”  Did  God,  in  this,  take  special  care  for 
oxen?  or  was  it  a great  general  principle,  — human, 
not  confined  to  a single  isolated  case,  but  capable 
of  extension  to  the  plougher  and  the  sower.  The  ox 
was  provided  for,  not  because  it  was  an  ox,  but  because 
it  was  a laborer.  3.  By  a principle  of  fairness  and 
reciprocity,  as  taught  in  the  second  verse,  great  services 
establish  a claim.  One  who  has  saved  another’s  life 
has  a right  to  recompense.  It  is  not  merely  a matter 
of  option.  If  they  owed  to  the  Apostle  their  souls,  his 
time  had  a claim  on  their  gold.  4.  By  the  law  of  the 
Temple  Service,  the  priests  were  supported  by  a special 
provision : animals  sacrificed  to  God  belonged  partly 
to  them.  The  whole  Jewish  ritual  — the  institution  of 
Levites  and  priests,  — implied  the  principle  that  there 
are  two  kinds  of  labor  — of  hand  and  of  brain  : and 
that  the  toilers  with  the  brain,  though  not  producers, 
have  a claim  on  the  community.  They  are  essential 
to  its  well-being,  and  are  not  mere  drones.  By  all 
these  arguments  he  proves  his  right. 

Now  it  is  our  business  at  this  time  to  insist  on  the 
right.  True,  the  Apostle  waived  it  for  himself ; but 
he  did  this  under  special  circumstances.  He  felt  pe- 
culiarly bound,  as  specially  and  wonderfully  saved. 
He  had  a peculiar  gift  qualifying  him  for  celibacy. 
He  lived  in  peculiar  times,  when  it  was  necessary  to 
have  unmistakably  clean  hands^  to  be  above  all  sus- 
picion of  mercenary  motives. 

But  what  was  a duty  in  his  case  might  be  contrary 
to  duty  in  another  ; for  example,  when  a family  is  to  be 
maintained,  the  forfeiture  of  the  stipend  would  be  dis- 
tinctly wrong.  There  is,  therefore,  no  shame  in  re- 
ceiving hire  : there  is  no  disgrace  in  toil,  no  dishonor  in 
receiving  wages.  It  is  a false  shame  and  false  delicacy 
to  feel  that  the  fee  with  hire  is  a stain,  or  the  receiving 
of  it  a mercenary  act. 

jr.  We  consider,  secondly,  liis  own  valiant  absti- 
nence from  these  privileges  and  indulgences  (verses 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


145 


12,  15).  And,  first,  his  reasons.  In  order  to  do  his 
work  in  a free,  princely,  and  not  a slavish  spirit,  he 
forced  to  preach  the  gospel,  and  for  the  preaching 
of  it  no  thanks  were  due.  If  he  did  it  against  his  will, 
a dispensation  of  the  gospel  was  committed  to  him,  and 
woe  is  unto  me,  if  I preach  not  the  gospel ! ” He 
was  hound  to  do  it.  But  he  turned  his  necessity  to 
glorious  gain.  That  was  his  reward,”  that  is,  made 
him  rewardable  — by  forfeiting  pay  he  got  reward : 
and  in  doing what  he  must  do,  he  became  free. 
When  I must”  is  changed  into  ‘‘1  will,”  you  are 
free.  And  so  in  a profession  you  dislike — an  alliance 
which  is  distasteful  — a duty  that  must  be  done  — 
acquiescence  in  Christian  liberty.  It  is  deliverance  from 
the  Law. 

His  second  reason  was  to  ^ain  others.  For  thouoih  I 
be  free  from  all  men,  yet  have  I made  myself  servant 
unto  all,  that  I might  gain  the  more.”  For  this  was 
only  one  instance  out  of  many  ; his  whole  life  was 
one  great  illustration  of  the  principle : free  from  all,  he 
became  the.  servant  of  all.  He  condescended  to  the 
mode  of  looking  at  life  that  was  peculiar  to  the  Gen- 
tiles with  respect  to  their  education  and  associations  : 
to  the  Jews  also,  when  form  was  expressive  of  a true 
and  reverential  spirit.  Nor  less  to  the  weak  and  super- 
stitious ; he  sympathized  with  their  weakness,  tried  to 
understand  them,  and  to  feel  as  they  felt. 

Lastly,  consider  the  general  principles  of  our  human 
life.  The  conditions  of  this  existence  are  not  that  you 
can  run  as  you  will  — but  they  are  as  the  conditions  of 
a race : Know  ye  not  that  they  which  run  in  a race 
run  all,  but  one  receiveth  the  prize  ? So  run,  that  ye 
may  obtain.”  You  cannot  go  on  saying,  I have  a right 
to  do  this,  therefore  I will  do  it.  You  must  think  how 
it  will  appear^  not  for  the  sake  of  mere  respectability, 
or  merely  to  obtain  a character  for  consistency,  but  for 
the  sake  of  others.  And  its  conditions  are  as  those  of 
a wrestling  match  — you  must  be  temperate  in  all  things 
— that  is,  abstain  from  even  lawful  indulgences.  For 
he  who  trained  for  the  amphitheatre  abridged  himself 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


140 


of  indulgences  wliicli,  under  other  circumstances,  lie 
might  and  would  have  used.  Then  the  Apostle  closes 
his  triumphant  argument : I therefore  so  run,  not 
as  uncertainly  ; so  fight  I,  not  as  one  that  heateth  the 
air  ; ” — not  at  hazard,  hut  taking  it  coolly,  as  if  sure 
of  victory. 

Remember,  no  man  liveth  to  himself.  The  cry. 

Am  I my  brother’s  keeper?  ” is  met  by  St.  Paul’s 
clear,  steadfast  answer,  You  are.”  Herein  is  opened 
out  to  us  the  exceeding  love  of  the  Christian  Life. 
Heathenism,  in  its  highest  efforts,  contented  itself  with 
doing  right  : Christianity  demands  that  your  right  shall 
not  lead  others  wrong : that  it  shall  do  no  violence  to 
that  most  sacred  and  delicate  thing,  a Human  Con- 
science. 

There  is  another  inference  from  this  chapter,  which 
is  entirely  incidental.  In  the  first  part  of  the  chapter 
Paul  introduces  the  name  of  Barnabas  as  associated 
with  himself  as  his  fellow  worker.  Now,  in  earlier 
life,  these  two  men  had  quarrelled  about  Mark,  the 
nephew  of  Barnabas ; and  from  that  time  to  this,  out- 
wardly there  had  been  an  estrangement,  but  now  there 
comes  forth  this  most  touching  recollection  of  their 
past  friendship.  Let  us  learn  from  this  what  it  is  that 
binds  men  truly  together.  It  is  not  union  in  pleasures, 
for  the  companions  of  our  pleasures  are  separated  from 
us,  and  we  look  back  to  them  only  with  pain  and 
shame.  That  which  separated  these  two  men  was  in 
one  a sterner  sense  of  duty  ; in  the  other,  a tenderness 
of  love  ; but  that  which  bound  them  one  for  ever  was 
self-sacrifice.  If  there  were  too  much  tenderness  in 
Barnabas,  there  was  no  love  of  gold,  for  he,  like  Paul, 
preaclied  the  Gospel  without  charge.  Union  in  God 
through  the  sacrifice  of  self — this  is  alone  the  indisso- 
luble union  ; all  others  are  for  time. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


147 


LECTURE  XIX. 

December  14,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  x.  — Moreover,  brethren,  I would  not  that  ye  should 
be  ignorant,  how  that  all  our  fathers  were  under  the  cloud,  and  all 
passed  through  the  sea;  — And  were  all  baptized  unto  Moses  in  the 
cloud  and  in  the  sea ; — And  did  all  eat  the  same  spiritual  meat  ; — 
And  did  all  drink  the  same  spiritual  drink  : for  they  drank  of  that 
spiritual  Rock  that  followed  them  : and  that  Rock  was  Christ.  — 
But  with  many  of  them  God  was  not  well  pleased  : for  they  were 
overthrown  in  the  wilderness.  — Now  these  things  were  our  ex- 
amples, to  the  intent  we  should  not  lust  after  evil  things,  as  they 
also  lusted.  — Neither  be  ye  idolaters,  as  were  some  of  them;  as  it 
is  written,  The  people  sat  down  to  eat  and  drink,  and  rose  up  to 
play. — Neither  let  commit  fornication,  as  some  of  them  com- 
mitted, and  fell  in  one  day  three  and  twenty  thousand.  — Neither 
let  us  tempt  Christ,  as  some  of  them  also  tempted,  and  were  destroy- 
ed of  serpents.  — Neither  murmur  ye,  as  some  of  them  also  mur- 
mured, and  were  destroyed  of  the  destroyer.  — Now  all  these  things 
happened  unto  them  for  ensamples  : and  they  are  written  for  our 
admonition,  upon  whom  the  ends  of  the  world  are  come. — Wherefore 
let  him  that  thinketh  he  standeth  take  heed  lest  he  fall.  — There 
hath  no  temptation  taken  you  but  such  as  is  common  to  man  : but 
God  is  faithful,  who  will  not  suffer  you  to  be  tempted  above  that  ye 
are  able  ; but  will  with  the  temptation  also  make  a way  to  escape, 
that  ye  may  be  able  to  bear  it.  — Wherefore,  my  dearly  beloved, 
flee  from  idolatry.  — I speak  as  to  wise  men;  judge  ye  what  I say. — 
The  cup  of  blessing  which  we  bless,  is  it  not  the  communion  of  the 
blood  of  Christ  ? The  bread  which  we  break,  is  it  not  the  communion 
of  the  body  of  Christ  ? — For  we  being  many  are  one  bread,  and  one 
body  : for  we  are  all  partakers  of  that  one  bread.  — Behold  Israel 
after  the  flesh  : are  not  they  which  eat  of  the  sacrifices  partakers  of 
the  altar  ? — What  say  I then  ? that  the  idol  is  any  thing,  or  that 
which  is  offered  in  saerifice  to  idols  is  any  thing  ? — But  I say, 
that  the  things  which  the  Gentiles  sacrifice,  they  sacrifice  to  devils, 
and  not  to  God : and  I would  not  that  ye  should  have  fellowship 
with  devils.  — Ye  cannot  drink  the  cup  of  the  Lord,  and  the  cup  of 
devils  : ye  cannot  be  partakers  of  the  Lord’s  table,  and  of  the  table 
of  devils. — Do  we  provoke  the  Lord  to  jealousy?  are  we  stronger 
than  he  ? — All  things  are  lawful  for  me,  but  all  things  are  not  ex- 
pedient : all  things  are  lawful  for  me,  but  all  things  edify  not.  — 
Let  no  man  seek  his  own,  but  every  man  another’s  wealth.  — What- 
soever is  sold  in  the  shambles,  that  eat,  asking  no  questions  for 
conscience  sake  : — For  the  earth  is  the  Lord’s,  and  the  fulness 
thereof.  — If  any  of  them  that  believe  not  bid  you  to  a feast,  and 


148 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ye  be  disposed  to  go  ; whatsoever  is  set  before  you,  eat,  asking  no 
question  for  conscience  sake.  — But  if  any  man  say  unto  you,  Tiiis 
is  offered  in  sacrifice  unto  idols,  eat  not  for  his  sake  that  shewed 
it,  and  for  conscience  sake  : for  the  earth  is  the  Lord’s,  and  the 
fulness  thereof:  — Conscience,  I say,  not  thine  own,  but  of  the 
other  : for  why  is  my  liberty  judged  of  another  man’s  conscienoe  ? — 
For  if  I by  grace  be  a partaker,  why  am  I evil  spoken  of  for  that 
for  which  I give  thanks?  — Whether  therefore  ye  eat,  or  drink,  or 
whatsoever  ye  do,  do  all  to  the  glory  of  God.  — Give  none  offence, 
neither  to  the  Jews,  nor  to  the  Gentiles,  nor  to  the  church  of  God  : 
— Even  as  I please  all  men  in  all  things,  not  seeking  mine  own 
profit,  but  the  profit  of  many,  that  they  may  be  saved.” 


This  chapter  closes  with  a return  to  tlie  subject 
which  had  been  already  discussed  in  tlie  eighth  and 
ninth  chapters.  Obviously,  tlie  intermediate  argument 
is  connected  with  it,  although  this  connection  is  not 
clear  at  first  sight.  St.  Paul  had  laid  down  a principle 
that  Christian  liberty  is  limited  by  Christian  charity  : 

All  things  are  lawful  to  me,  but  all  things  are  not 
expedient.”  Then  he  had  shown  tha^^he  himself  obeyed 
the  same  law  which  he  imposed  on  his  converts.  He 
had  abridged  his  own  liberty : he  had  foregone  his  right 
to  domestic  solaces  and  ministerial  support : he  had 
not  preached  to  others,  and  been  himself  a castaway. 
But  then  this  very  word  castaway  ” brought  the 
subject  into  a more  serious  light,  and  the  idea  contained 
in  it  is  the  hinge  on  which  this  chapter  turns. 

There  was  much  light  and  liberty  ” in  Corinth. 
Large  words  were  there,  and  a large  comprehension  of 
the  Gospel  scheme.  But  it  was  light  without  warmth 
or  life,  and  liberty  without  charity.  There  were  large 
words  without  large  action,  and  a faith  which  worked 
not  by  love.  And  all  this  gave  rise  to  serious  misgiv- 
ings in  the  Apostle’s  mind.  This  boasted  Church  of 
Corinth,  with  its  sharp  and  restless  intellect,  would  it 
stand?  Were  the  symptoms  it  exhibited  those  of  burst- 
ing health,  or  only  of  active  disease?  So  thought  St. 
Paul,  and  therefore  the  key-note  of  the  whole  chapter 
is  the  twelfth  verse  : Let  him  that  tliinketh  he  stand- 
etli  take  heed  lest  he  fall.” 

(yonsider,  then,  1.  The  danger  of  the  Corinthian 
Church. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


149 


Their  peril  lay  in  their  false  security : they  were 
tempted  to  think  that  all  things  were  safe  to  do,  because 
all  things  were  lawful.  They  were  ready  to  rest  satis- 
fied with  the  knowledge  that  they  were  God’s  people, 
and  God’s  Church.  Now  the  Apostle  shakes  this  sense 
of  their  safety  by  reminding  them  that  the  ancient 
Church  of  Israel  fell,  although  they  had  the  same 
privileges ; therefore  he  infers  that  spiritual  privileges 
are  not  perfect  security.  Now  the  argument  by  which 
he  proves  that  the  privileges  of  ancient  Israel  were 
similar  to  theirs,  is  remarkable.  That  people  had  a 
baptism  as  well  as  they,  and  a spiritual  food  and  drink : 
“ They  were  all  baptized  unto  Moses  in  the  cloud  and 
in  the  sea  ; and  did  all  eat  the  same  spiritual  meat ; 
and  did  all  drink  the  same  spiritual  drink.”  Baptism 
is  the  solemn  profession  of  our  Christianity : and  the 
passing  through  the  Red  Sea  was  the  Israelites’  pro- 
fession of  discipleship  to  Moses : then  they  passed  the 
Rubicon,  the  die  was  cast,  and  thenceforward  there 
was  no  return  for  them.  One  solemn  step  had  severed 
them  for  ever  from  Egypt : and  the  cloud,  guidance 
which  then  began,  kept  the  memory  of  this  act  before 
them  by  a constant  witness  in  all  their  journeyings. 
So  far,  then,  this  is  equivalent  to  baptism,  which  is 
discipleship  : a sacrament  or  oath  of  obedience,  the 
force  of  which  is  kept  up  and  recalled  by  an  outward 
sign.  They  had  another  sacrament  in  the  rock  which 
followed  them.”  The  rock  did  not  literally  follow 
them,  as  the  Rabbins  have  with  dulness  dreamed ; but 
go  where  they  would,  the  wondrous  waters  from  the 
rock  flowed  by  their  path  and  camp.  Figuratively, 
therefore,  it  followed,  the  life  of  it  streamed  after  them  : 
they  were  never  without  its  life-giving  influence  ; and, 
therefore,  never  destitute  of  a sacrament : that  rock 
was  Christ.”  And  here  observe  the  Apostle’s  view  of 
the  sacramental  principle.”  As  Christ  said  of  the 
Bread,  this  is  my  body,”  so  St.  Paul  declares,  ^Ghat 
rock  was  Christ ; ” not  that  the  bread  was  literally 
transformed  into  His  body,  or  that  the  rock  was  changed 
into  Christ ; nor,  again,  merely  tliat  bread  represented 


150 


LECTUKES  ON  I'lIE  EPISTLES 


the  body  of  Christ,  or  tliat  the  rock  represented  Clirist; 
but  this  — that  which  is  wondrous  in  tlie  bread  and 
rock,  the  life-giving  power  in  botli,  is  Clirist.  Tlie 
symbol  as  a material  is  nothing,  the  spirit  in  it  — Clirist 
— is  everything. 

Now  the  mystic  and  formalist  say  these  signs,  and 
these  only,  convey  grace  : sacraments  are  miraculous. 
But  St.  Paul  says  to  the  Corinthians^  the  Jews  had 
symbols  as  living  as  yours.  Bread,  Wine,  Water,  Cloud ; 
it  matters  nought  what  the  material  is.  God’s  Presence 
is  everything ; God’s  Power,  God’s  Life  — wherever 
these  exist,  there  there  is  a sacrament.  What  is  the 
lesson,  then,  which  we  learn  ? Is  it  that  God’s  Life, 
and  Love,  and  Grace  are  limited  to  certain  materials, 
such  as  the  Rock,  the  Bread,  or  the  Wine  ? is  it  that 
we  are  doing  an  awful  act  only  when  we  baptize  ? or 
is  it  not  much  rather,  that  all  here  is  sacramental,  that 
we  live  in  a fearful  and  a Divine  world ; that  every 
simple  meal,  that  every  gushing  stream,  every  rolling 
river,  and  every  drifting  cloud,  is  the  Symbol  of  God, 
and  a sacrament  to  every  open  heart  ? And  the  power 
of  recoo-nizino;  and  feelino;  this,  makes  all  the  difference 
between  the  religious  and  the  irreligious  spirit.  There 
were  those,  doubtless,  in  the  wilderness,  who  saw  noth- 
ing mysterious  or  wonderful  in  the  following  water. 
Tiiey  rationalized  upon  its  origin : it  quenched  their 
thirst,  and  that  was  all  it  meant  to  them.  But  there 
were  others  to  whom  it  was  the  very  Love  and  Power 
of  God. 

Having,  then,  established  this  parallel,  the  Apostle 
draws  his  conclusion.  The  Jews  had  as  full  privileges 
as  you  Corinthians  have,  and  yet  they  fell ; you  have 
your  privileges,  but  you  may  see  in  these  examples  that 
])rivi leges  are  no  cause  for  security,  but  only  for  greater 
lieed.  Let  liim  tliat  thinketh  he  standeth  take  lieed 
lest  he  fall.”  But  according  to  a common  view  of  the 
(diristian  state,  it  is  one  of  easier  requirement  tlian  the 
Jewish,  more  merciful  and  more  lax  in  its  command- 
nrents  and  tlidr  sjuictions.  J’he  dews,  it  is  urged,  were 
severely  fiunished  if  they  sinned,  but  Christians  may 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


151 


sin,  and  be  more  mercifully  dealt  with.  You  cannot 
read  this  Epistle,  or  that  to  the  Hebrews,  and  think  so. 

All  these  things  happened  unto  them  for  ensamples, 
and  were  written  for  our  admonition,  upon  whom  the 
ends  of  the  world  are  come.”  And  the  punishments 
which  their  offences  met  with  are  specimens  of  those 
which  we  may  expect.  Four  special  sins  of  the  Israel- 
ites are  mentioned  by  St.  Paul  as  corresponding  to  the 
circumstances  in  which  he  found  the  Corinthian  Church  ; 
idolatry,  impurity,  doubt,  and  discontent.  Is  God 
among  us,  or  not  ? ” said  the  people  in  the  wilderness, 
tempting  Jehovah.  Think  you  we  shall  be  less  punished 
than  they,  if  we  similarly  tempt  our  God  ? This  chap- 
ter gives  the  answer.  Here,  then,  we  meet  a very 
solemn  truth  : the  sacrifice  of  Christ  does  not  alter 
God’s  Will : it  does  not  make  sin  a trifle  : it  does  not 
make  it  safer  to  commit  offences.  It  does  not  abrogate, 
but  declares  God’s  law.  He  that  despised  Moses’ 
law  died  without  mercy  under  two  or  three  witnesses  ; 
of  how  much  sorer  punishment  shall  he  be  thought  wor- 
thy, who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of  God,  and 
put  Him  to  an  open  shame  ! ” And  these  Corinthians 
were  boasting  of  their  privileges,  vaunting  their  liberties, 
talking  of  rights  instead  of  doing  duties,  speaking  of 
Freedom,  Brotherhood,  and  Reason,  and  all  the  time 
the  same  God  who  judged  the  people  in  the  wilderness 
was  ruling  them  by  the  same  unalterable  laws. 

II.  The  second  thing  contained  in  this  chapter  is  the 
resumption  of  the  argument  on  the  difficulty  about  eat- 
ing meat  offered  to  idols,  with  further  advice  respecting 
it. 

Let  me  recall  briefly  what  the  difficulty  was.  If  they 
eat  the  meat  they  seemed  to  sanctify  idolatry  : if  they 
abstained,  they  seemed  to  say  that  an  idol  was  a real 
being,  and  so  they  gave  a sanction  to  superstition.  It 
was  one  of  those  circumstances  where  a true  decision  on 
a duty  lay  in  great  obscurity.  Now  the  Apostle  admits 
it  to  be  a difficulty,  but  he  will  not  allow  them  to  think 


152 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ETISTLES 


it  an  inextricable  one.  There  is  no  excuse  here  for 
acting  wrong : there  has  no  temptation  taken  you 

which  is  not  common  to  man  : ” there  is  a way  of  escape, 
and  by  it  they  may  rescue  themselves  without  either 
guilt  or  hypocrisy.  lie  had  already  counselled  them 
to  abstain  for  the  sake  of  Love,  lest  their  example  might 
lead  their  weaker  brethren  to  sin  by  violating  their  con- 
science : now  he  takes  higher  ground  : and  this  is  his 
argument.  Every  sacrificial  feast  in  all  religions  is  a 
kind  of  worship  : in  the  Christian  religion  tliere  was  the 
Lord’s  Supper,  and  all  they  who  participated  in  that 
rite  were  Christians.  They  communicated  with  Christ, 
they  declared  His  character  was  their  standard  of  life : 
“ the  Cup  of  Blessing  which  we  bless,  is  it  not  the  Com- 
munion of  the  Blood  of  Christ  ? ” And,  further,  in  the 
Jewish  religion  all  who  ate  of  the  Jewish  offerings  were 
Jews  ; they  professed  themselves  to  be  such  by  sharing 
in  the  act.  Thus,  in  the  same  way  as  all  who  partook 
of  Christian  sacrifices  were  Christians,  and  all  who  took 
part  in  Jewish  were  Jews,  so  all  who  sat  at  meat  in 
idolatrous  feasts  communicated  with  idols,  and  formed 
one  society  with  idolatrous  worshippers.  Such  acts  as 
these  brought  confusion  into  opinion,  and  the  Church  : 
‘‘Ye  cannot  drink  the  cup  of  devils.” 

Here,  however,  a difficulty  arose.  Could  the  Apostle 
mean  this  literally  ? Partaking  of  Jewish  altars,  they 
shared,  he  said,  with  God  ; of  Christian,  with  Christ ; 
of  heathen,  with  idols  ! Then  the  idol  was  a real  thing 
after  all  ? But  in  answer  to  this  St.  Paul  explains 
himself : “ What  say  I then  ? that  the  idol  is  anything, 
or  that  which  is  offered  in  sacrifice  to  idols  anything  ? ” 
No  : but  the  Gentiles  sacrifice  their  offerings  as  to  a 
demon.  The  heathen  thought  it  a sacrifice  to  a real 
god,  and  would  reckon  any  one  who  ate  of  it  as  a 
fcJlow-worsliipper  with  them  of  a demon  ; hence  the 
Corintliian  Church  could  not  do  it  without  conveying  a 
f'alse  im{)ression  : their  presence  would  be  taken  as  a 
sanction  of  heathenism.  Thus  these  religious  banquets 
being  not  only  an  injur v to  the  Church,  but  also  to  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


153 


heathen,  the  Apostle,  indignant  at  this  wrong,  breaks 
out  into  forcible  language,  Do  we  provoke  the  Lord 
to  jealousy  ? are  we  stronger  than  He  ? ” 

With  St.  Paul  we  infer,  in  conclusion,  two  practical 
truths. 

1.  The  law  by  which  the  Lord’s  Supper  binds  us  to 
God.  Ye  cannot  drink  the  cup  of  the  Lord  and  the 
cup  of  devils.”  The  term  Sacrament  has  been  already 
discussed  : that  Feast  is  now  called  Communion  : ” in 
it  we  have  fellowship  with  God  and  His  Church  : it  is 
the  witness  to  the  communion  of  saints.  To  some  who 
attend  it  the  Lord’s  Supper  is  a mere  form ; with  others 
it  is  a means  of  some  good,  they  know  not  what.  But, 
except  so  far  as  it  keeps  us  from  evil,  it  is  only  a fresh 
cause  of  guilt : for  to  go  to  that  table,  meaning  to  sin, 
to  be  selfish  and  worldly,  — well,  then,  you  are  a traitor 
to  God  and  His  Church. 

2.  The  duty  of  attending  to  appearances. 

Nothing  can  be  more  plain  than  the  wise  Christian 

casuistry  by  which  St.  Paul  taught  the  Corinthians  how 
to  avoid  hypocrisy  on  the  one  side,  and  a sanction  of 
idolatry  on  the  other.  They  were  not  to  torment  them- 
selves with  unnecessary  scruples,  else  life  would  be  a 
haunted  thing.  Live  on  freely  and  trustfully,  said  the 
Apostle  ; all  things  are  yours.  Enjoy  all : but  if  any 
man  be  likely  to  mistake  the  act,  if  he  observe  on  it,  or 
call  it  inconsistent,  eat  not.  Now  we  may  think  this 
time-serving  ; but  the  motive  made  all  the  difference  : 

Conscience,  I say,  not  thine  own,  but  of  the  other.” 
Study  appearances,  therefore,  so  far  as  they  are  likely 
to  be  injurious  to  others.  Here,  then,  is  the  principle 
and  the  rule  ; we  cannot  live  in  this  world  indifferent 
to  appearances.  Year  by  year  we  are  more  and  more 
taught  this  truth.  It  is  irksome,  no  doubt,  to  be  under 
restraint,  to  have  to  ask  not  only,  Does  God  permit 
this  ? ” but,  “ Will  it  not  be  misconstrued  by  others  ? ” 
and  to  a free,  open,  fiery  spirit,  such  as  the  Apostle  of 
the  Gentiles,  doubly  irksome,  and  almost  intolerable. 
Nevertheless,  it  was  to  him  a most  solemn  consideration : 


154 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Why  should  I make  my  goodness  and  my  riglit  the  oc- 
casion of  blasphemy?  Truly,  then,  and  boldly,  and 
not  carelessly,  he  determined  to  give  no  offence  to  Jews 
or  Gentiles,  or  to  the  Church  of  God,  l)ut  to  please  all 
men.  And  the  measure  or  restraint  of  this  resolution 
was,  that  in  carrying  it  into  practice  he  would  seek  not 
his  own  profit,  but  the  profit  of  many,  that  they  might 
be  saved. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


155 


LECTURE  XX. 

December  21,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  xi.  1-17.  — “Be  ye  followers  of  me,  even  as  I also 
am  of  Christ.  — Now  I praise  you,  brethren,  that  ye  remember  me 
in  all  things,  and  keep  the  ordinances,  as  I delivered  them  to  you. 

— But  I would  have  you  know,  that  the  head  of  every  man  is  Christ; 
and  the  head  of  the  woman  is  the  man ; and  the  head  of  Christ  is 
God.  — Everyman  praying  or  prophesying,  having  his  head  covered, 
dishonoreth  his  head.  — But  every  woman  that  prayeth  or  prophesi- 
eth  with  her  head  uncovered,  dishonoreth  her  head  : for  that  is  even 
all  one  as  if  she  were  shaven.  — For  if  the  woman  be  not  covered,  let 
her  also  be  shorn  : but  if  it  be  a shame  for  a woman  to  be  shorn  or 
shaven,  let  her  be  covered.  — For  a man  indeed  ought  not  to  cover 
his  head,  ferasmuch  as  he  is  the  image  and  glory  of  God  : but  the 
woman  is  the  glory  of  the  man.  — For  the  man  is  not  of  the  woman; 
but  the  woman  of  the  man.  — Neither  was  the  man  created  for  the 
woman;  but  the  woman  for  the  man. — For  this  cause  ought  the 
woman  to  have  power  on  her  head  because  of  the  angels.  — Never- 
theless, neither  is  the  man  without  the  woman,  neither  the  woman 
without  the  man,  in  the  Lord.  — For  as  the  woman  is  of  the  man, 
even  so  is  the  man  also  by  the  woman,  but  all  things  of  God.  — 
Judge  in  yourselves  : is  it  comely  that  a woman  pray  unto  God  un- 
covered ? — Doth  not  even  nature  itself  teach  you,  that,  if  a man 
have  long  hair,  it  is  a shame  unto  him  ? — But  if  a woman  have  long 
hair,  it  is  a glory  to  her  : for  her  hair  is  given  her  for  a covering. 

— But  if  any  man  seem  to  be  contentious,  we  have  no  such  custom, 
neither  the  churches  of  God.  — Now,  in  this  that  I declare  unto  you 
I praise  you  not,  that  ye  come  together  not  for  the  better,  but  for 
the  worse.” 

As  tlie  Gospels  declare  the  principles  of  Christianity, 
so  the  Epistles  exhibit  those  principles  in  their  applica- 
tion to  actual  life.  Specially  valuable  in  this  respect  is 
this  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  which  might  be  defined 
as  Christianity  applied  to  the  details  of  ordinary  life. 
Now  large  principles,  when  taken  up  by  ardent  and  en- 
thusiastic minds,  without  the  modifications  learnt  by 
experience,  are  almost  sure  to  run  into  extravagances, 
and  hence  the  spirit  of  law  is  by  degrees  reduced  to 
rules,  and  guarded  by  customs.  Of  this  danger  Chris- 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


15G 

tiaiiitj,  wlilcli  is  a set  of  great  principles,  partook,  a fact 
well  proved  by  the  existent  state  of  the  Corinthian 
Church  : and  for  this  reason  in  actual  life  it  is  expressed 
in  rules  and  customs,  such  as  we  find  laid  down  by  tlie 
Apostle  Paul  in  this  Epistle.  In  this  chapter  we  meet 
two  of  those  extravagant  abuses  of  Christian  truth  which 
arose  from  its  too  enthusiastic  reception. 

I.  Respecting  the  conduct  and  deportment  of  Chris- 
tian women. 

II.  Respecting  the  administration  of  the  Lord’s  Sup- 
per. 

Of  the  first  I will  speak  to-day. 

A broad  principle  laid  down  by  Christianity  was  hu- 
man equality  : One  is  your  Master,  even  Christ ; ” 
and  again,  There  is  neither  Jew  nor  Greek,  there  is 
neither  bond  nor  free,  there  is  neither  male  nor  female, 
but  ye  are  all  one  in  Christ  Jesus,”  Observe,  not  only  is 
the  distinction  between  Jew  and  Gentile  abolished,  but 
also  the  equality  of  man  and  woman  is  declared.  We  all 
know  how  fruitful  a cause  of  popular  commotion  the 
teaching  of  equality  has  been  in  every  age.  Yet  it  is 
Scripture  doctrine.  Now  similarly,  in  the  Corinthian 
Church,  this  doctrine  of  the  abolition  of  distinctions  be- 
tween the  sexes  threatened  to  lead  to  much  social  con- 
fusion. A claim  was  made  for  a right  and  power  in 
woman  to  do  all  that  men  should  do.  They  demanded 
that  they  should  teach,  preach,  and  pray  in  public,  and 
have  political  privileges  of  exact  equality.  Strange, 
too,  as  it  may  seem,  a Christian  right  was  claimed  to 
appear  unveiled  in  the  public  assemblies. 

Now  respecting  the  first  of  these . claims,  the  Apos- 
tle’s rule  was  that  laid  down  in  1 Tim.  ii.  12  : But  I 
suffer  not  a woman  to  teach,  nor  to  usurp  authority 
over  the  man,  but  to  be  in  silence.”  Respecting  the 
second,  St.  Paul  in  this  chapter  commands  the  woman 
not  to  affect  an  attire  that  was  unbecoming  to  her  sex. 
Let  us  first  take  the  verses  in  order  which  have  refer- 
ence to  attire. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


157 


It  is  one  advantage  attending  on  this  our  habit  of  ex- 
position, that  in  turn  every  part  of  the  Word  of  God 
must  be  expounded.  Many  passages  that  are  rarely 
treated  force  themselves  thus  upon  us  ; and  in  honesty 
we  are  bound  to  pass  nothing.  And  this  I hold  to  be 
true  reverence  for  God’s  Word,  true  proof  of  belief  in 
its  inspiration.  For  many  who  are  vehement  upon  the 
doctrine  of  inspiration  never  read  large  portions  of  the 
Scriptures  all  their  lives,  and  confine  their  attention  to 
certain  passages  and  certain  parts  of  the  Bible.  Now 
here  are  some  verses  which,  left  to  ourselves,  we  should 
certainly  have  left  untouched,  because  they  are  difficult 
to  treat  in  such  a way  as  shall  afford  no  pretext  for  flip- 
pant listeners  to  smile.  And  really,  if  they  only  con- 
cerned a transient  fashion  of  attire,  such  as  then  existed 
in  Corinth,  they  might  be  omitted,  for  the  Eternal 
Spirit  surely  does  not  condescend  to  fix  unalterable 
rules  of  dress.  But  let  us  see  what  principles  lie  below 
St.  Paul’s  decision. 

The  first  reason  of  his  prohibition  is,  that  it  was  a 
rash  defiance  of  those  established  rules  of  decorum  that 
were  rooted  in  the  feelings  of  the  country.  The  veiled 
head  in  the  text  is  a symbol  of  dependence,  and  a token 
also  of  modesty ; for  to  pray  unveiled  was  to  insult  all 
the  conventional  feelings  of  Jew  and  Gentile.  Here 
let  us  distinguish  between  rules  and  principles:  of  course 
there  is  no  eternal  rule  in  this : it  cannot  be  a law  for 
ever  that  man  should  appear  habited  in  one  way,  and 
woman  in  another,  and  it  is  valuable  to  us  only  so  far 
as  a principle  is  involved. 

Though  in  eastern  countries  reverence  was  exhibited 
by  taking  off  the  sandal,  yet  the  Holy  Ghost  has  not 
caused  this  mode  of  showing  reverence  to  be  imposed 
on  the  Church,  nor  yet  this  fashion  of  a veil ; but  the 
principle  contained  in  these  observances  is  not  tem- 
porary, but  eternal.  If  it  be  true,  as  it  most  unques- 
tionably is  true,  that  we  know  not  how  much  of  our 
English  liberty  we  owe  to  our  attachment  to  the  past, 
so  also  is  it  almost  impossible  to  decide  how  much  of 
our  public  morality  and  private  purity  is  owing  to  that 


158 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


same  spirit  which  refuses  to  overstep  the  smallest  bound 
of  ordinary  decorum. 

Once  more,  tlie  use  of  the  veil  was  a representation 
and  symbol  of  dependence.  It  is  the  doctrine  of  St. 
Paul,  that  as  Christ  is  dependent  on  God,  and  man  is 
dependent  on  Christ,  so  is  woman  dependent  on  man. 
St.  Paul  perceived  that  the  law  of  Christian  equality 
was  quite  consistent  with  the  vast  system  of  subordina- . 
tion  running  through  the  universe : But  I would 

have  you  know,  that  the  head  of  every  man  is  Christ ; 
and  the  head  of  the  woman  is  the  man  ; and  the  head 
of  Christ  is  God ; ” which  two  things  we  see  he  dis- 
tinctly unites  in  verses  eleven  and  twelve  when  he  says, 
“ Nevertlieless,  neither  is  the  man  without  the  woman, 
neither  the  woman  without  the  man,  in  the  Lord ; for 
as  the  woman  is  of  the  man,  even  so  is  the  man  also 
by  the  woman ; but  all  things  of  God.”  He  asserts 
subordination  in  one  sense,  and  denies  it  in  another  ; 
and  therefore  bids  the  foolish  question  of  ‘ Which  is 
the  greater  ? ’ to  cease  for  ever : for  he  distinguishes 
between  inferiority  and  subordination,  that  each  sex 
exists  in  a certain  order,  not  one  as  greater  than  the 
other,  but  both  great  and  right  in  being  what  God 
intended  them  to  be. 

The  second  reason  assigned  for  the  Apostle’s  prohi- 
bition is  an  appeal  to  natural  instincts  and  perceptions, 
to  natural  propriety.  Doth  not  even  nature  itself 
teach  you,  that,  if  a man  have  long  hair,  it  is  a shame 
unto  him  ? But  if  a woman  have  long  hair,  it  is  a 
glory  to  her : for  her  hair  is  given  to  her  as  a veil.” 
And  this  he  extends  still  further  in  Tim.  ii.  12,  so  far 
as  to  forbid  public  expositions  by  women  altogether  ; 
for,  inspired  with  strong  feeling,  such  as  accompanied 
the  outpouring  of  the  Spirit  in  the  early  ages,  the 
Christian  women  broke  out  at  the  church-^atherin^s 
into  proy)liesyings. 

Observe  how  the  Apostle  Paul  falls  back  on  Nature. 
In  nothing  is  the  difference  greater  between  fanaticism 
and  Christianity,  than  in  their  treatment  of  natural 
instincts  and  affections.  Fanaticism  defies  nature. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


159 


Christianity  refines  it,  and  respects  it.  Christianity  does 
not  denaturalize,  but  only  sanctifies  and  refines  accord- 
ing to  the  laws  of  nature.  Christianity  does  not  destroy 
our  natural  instincts,  but  gives  them  a higher  and  a 
nobler  direction  : — for  instance,  natural  resentment 
becomes  elevated  into  holy  indignation.  Christianity 
does  not  dry  up  tears,  forbidding  their  flow ; but  rather 
infuses  into  them  a heavenly  hope.  It  does  not  make 
Scythian,  Barbarian,  and  “Israelites  indeed’’  all 
alike  ; — but  retains  their  peculiar  differences.  It  does 
not  make  Peter,  Paul,  and  John  mere  repetitions  of 
one  aspect  of  human  character  ; but  draws  out  into 
distinctive  prominence  the  courage  of  one,  the  self- 
denying  zeal  of  another,  and  the  tender  love  of  a third. 
And  just  as  the  white  light  of  heaven  does  not  make 
all  things  white,  but  the  intenser  it  is,  so  much  more 
intense  becomes  the  green,  the  blue,  or  the  red  ; and 
just  as  the  rain  of  heaven  falling  on  tree  and  plant 
develops  the  vigor  of  each  — every  tree  and  herb 
“ yielding  seed  after  his  kind ; ” and  just  as  leaven 
does  not  change  the  mass  into  something  new,  but 
makes  elastic,  and  firm,  and  springy,  that  which  was 
dull  and  heavy  before  : so  the  Spirit  of  Christ  develops 
each  nation,  sex,  and  individual,  according  to  their 
own  nature,  and  not  the  nature  of  another  — making 
man  more  manly,  and  woman  more  womanly.  And 
thus,  in  all  those  questions  which  belong  to  equality, 
the  ultimate  decision  is  not  by  theoretical  abstractions, 
but  by  an  appeal  to  nature  and  to  fact.  But  let  us  not 
forget  that  here,  too,  there  are  exceptions.  Beware  of 
a dead,  hard  rule.  Let  each  develop  himself,  accord- 
ing to  his  own  nature.  Whatever  contradicts  feelings 
which  are  universally  received  is  questionable,  to  say 
the  least. 

Observe,  however,  there  are  modifications  about  this 
doctrine  of  liberty.  Theoretically  all  men  are  equal, 
and  all  have  equal  rights  ; but  when  we  apply  this  to 
daily  life,  we  are  clouded  in  uncertainty.  Therefore, 
the  only  remedy  is  that  given  by  St.  Paul  in  this 
chapter  — that  the  abstract  principle  shall  be  modified 


160 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


by  common  sense,  human  nature,  and  holy  Christian 
experience. 

There  is  also  the  modification  of  the  right  of  private 
judgment.  It  is  a well-known  rule,  that  that  •which 
has  been  held  everywhere,  and  at  all  times,  is  to  be 
received  as  true ; this  modifies,  though  it  does  not 
destroy  the  right  of  private  judgment.  There  have 
been  many  instances  in  which  one  man  standing  against 
the  world  has  been  right,  and  the  world  wrong  — as 
Elijah,  Athanasius,  Luther,  and  others.  Therefore 
these  two  things  must  modify  each  other.  But  in 
questions  of  morality,  propriety,  decency,  when  we 
find  ourselves  — our  own  individual  desires  and  private 
judgment  — contradicted  by  the  general  experience, 
habit,  and  belief  of  all  the  purest  and  the  best  around 
us,  then  most  assuredly  Christian  modesty  and  the  doc- 
trine of  this  chapter  command  us  to  believe  that  the 
many  are  right,  and  that  we  are  wrong. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


161 


LECTURE  XXI. 

December  28,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  xi.  18-34.  — “ For  first  of  all,  when  ye  come  together 
in  the  church,  I hear  that  there  be  divisions  among  you;  and  I 
partly  believe  it.  — For  there  must  be  also  heresies  among  you,  that 
they  which  are  approved  may  be  made  manifest  among  you.  — When 
ye  come  together  therefore  into  one  place,  this  is  not  to  eat  the 
Lord’s  supper.  — For  in  eating  every  one  taketh  before  other  his 
own  supper  : and  one  is  hungry  and  another  is  drunken.  — What? 
have  ye  not  houses  to  eat  and  to  drink  in  ? or  despise  ye  the  church 
of  God,  and  shame  them  that  have  not  ? What  shall  I say  to  you  ? 
shall  I praise  you  in  this?  I praise  you  not.  — For  I have  received 
of  the  Lord  that  which  also  I delivered  unto  you,  that  the  Lord 
Jesus  the  same  nii^ht  in  which  he  was  betrayed  took  bread  : — And 
when  he  had  given  thanks,  he  brake  it,  and  said.  Take,  eat  : this  is 
my  body,  which  is  broken  for  you  : this  do  in  remembrance  of  me. 
— After  the  same  manner  also  he  took  the  cup,  when  he  had  supped, 
saying,  This  cup  is  the  new  testament  in  my  blood  : this  do  ye,  as 
oft  as  ye  drink  it,  in  remembrance  of  me.  — For  as  often  as  ye  eat 
this  bread,  and  drink  tliis  cup,  ye  do  shew  the  Lord’s  death  till  he 
come.  — Wherefore  whosoever  shall  eat  this  bread,  and  drink  this 
cup  of  the  Lord,  unworthily,  shall  be  guilty  of  the  body  and  blood 
of  the  Lord.  — But  let  a man  examine  himself,  and  so  let  him  eat 
of  that  bread,  and  drink  of  that  cup.  — For  he  that  eateth  and 
drinketh  unworthily,  eateth  and  drinketh  damnation  to  himself, 
not  discerning  the  Lord’s  body. — For  this  cause  many  are  weak 
and  sickly  among  you,  and  many  sleep. — For  if  we  would  judge 
ourselves,  we  should  not  be  judged.  — But  when  we  are  judged,  we 
are  chastened  of  the  Lord,  that  we  should  not  be  condemned  with 
the  world.  — Wherefore,  my  brethren,  when  ye  come  together  to 
eat,  tarry  one  for  another.  — And  if  any  man  hunger,  let  him  eat 
at  home ; that  ye  come  not  together  unto  condemnation.  And  the 
rest  will  I set  in  order  when  I come.  ’ ’ 


The  remainder  of  this  chapter  treats  of  an  abuse  in 
the  administration  of  the  Lord’s  Supper,  as  practised 
in  the  Church  of  Corinth.  It  may  be  necessary  here 
to  go  a little  into  historical  investigation. 

Every  Church  has  a right  to  introduce  new  forms 
and  ordinances ; and  the  Church  of  Corinth,  taking 
advantage  of  this  right,  introduced  what  was  called  a 
love-feast,  in  which  the  Churches  met  together  previous 


162 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


to  the  reception  of  the  Lord’s  Supper,  to  partake  of  a 
common  meal  — rich  and  poor  bringing  their  own 
provisions.  This  idea  seemed  in  strict  accordance 
with  the  original  institution  of  the  Lord’s  Supper,  as 
that  certainly  was  preceded  by  a common  meal.  There 
was  a great  beauty  in  this  arrangement,  because  it 
showed  the  conviction  of  the  Church  of  Corinth  that 
differences  of  birth  and  rank  are  not  eternal  but  tem- 
porary, and  are  intended  to  join  by  reciprocal  bonds 
the  different  classes  together.  Still,  beautiful  as  the 
idea  was,  it  was  liable  to  great  abuse.  Tlius  there 
arises  a perpetual  lesson  for  the  Church  of  Christ ; it  is 
never  good  to  mix  things  religious  with  things  worldly. 
In  the  highest  conceivable  form  of  the  Church  of 
Christ,  the  two  will  be  identified,  for  the  kingdoms 
of  the  world  are  to  become  the  kingdoms  of  God  and 
of  His  Christ.  In  order  to  make  these  two  one,  the 
Christian  plan  has  been  to  set  apart  certain  days  as 
holy,  that  through  these  all  other  days  may  be  sancti- 
fied : to  set  apart  a certain  class  of  men,  through  them 
to  sanctify  all  other  men : to  set  apart  one  particular 
meal,  that  all  meals  through  that  one  may  be  dedicated 
to  God. 

The  World’s  way  is  rather  this:  to  identify  things 
religious  and  worldly  by  throwing  the  spirit  of  the 
week-day  into  the  Sabbath ; to  make  Christian  Minis- 
ters like  other  men,  by  throwing  into  them  its  own 
secular  spirit ; and  to  eat  and  drink  of  the  Lord’s 
Supper  in  the  spirit  of  a common  meal. 

In  order  to  rectify  the  abuses  which  had  grown  out 
of  these  love-feasts,  the  Apostle  recalls  to  their  re- 
membrance the  reasons  for  the  original  institution  of 
the  Lord’s  Supper,  and  from  them  deduces  the  guilt 
and  responsibility  of  their  desecration  of  that  ordi- 
nance. lie  says  that  it  was  meant  as  a memorial  of 
the  Redeemer’s  sacrifice. 

There  may  aj)pear  to  us  something  superfluous  in 
this;  we  should  be  inclined  probably  to  say,  ‘‘We 
need  no  memorial  of  that ; it  is  graven  on  our  hearts 
as  on  the  rock  lor  ever.”  The  Son  of  Man  knew  our 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


163 


nature  far  too  well  to  trust  such  a pledge  even  if  it 
could  have  been  given.  He  knew  that  the  remem- 
brance of  it  would  fade  without  perpetual  repetition, 
and  also  an  appeal  to  the  senses  ; therefore  by  touch, 
by  taste,  by  sight,  an  appeal  is  made  to  the  senses, 
reminding  us  perpetually  that  Christianity  is  not  a 
thing  of  mere  feeling,  but  a real  historical  actuality. 
It  sets  Jesus  Christ  forth  evidently  crucified  among 
us. 

Let  us  draw  something  practical  from  this.  Mem- 
ory depends  on  two  things  — on  repetition,  and  on  the 
impression  being  a sensible  one,  that  is,  one  of  which 
the  senses  take  cognizance. 

Does  any  man  wish  to  forget  God  ? Does  any  man 
wish  to  live  in  sin  without  being  disturbed  by  the  pain- 
ful thought  of  Judgment?  We  can  tell  him  how  he 
may  insure  that  — for  a time  at  least.  Let  him  at- 
tempt to  be  wiser  than  his  Maker : let  him  say,  I can 
read  my  Bible  at  home,  and  worship  God  in  the  open 
beauties  of  Nature,  as  well  as  in  a church  ; ” let  him 
give  up  private  prayer,  and  never  attend  the  Lord’s 
table,  giving  up  all  that  is  symbolical  in  religion.  Let 
him  do  this,  and  we  will  insure  him  most  terrible  suc- 
cess ; for  so  “ judgment  to  come  ” will  be  to  him  only  a 
hypothesis,  and  God’s  own  existence  merely  di  perhaps. 

The  second  reason  for  the  institution  of  the  Lord’s 
Supper  was  to  keep  in  mind  Christ’s  second  Advent : 

Till  He  come.”  When  Christ  left  this  world,  it  was 
with  a promise  that  he  would  return  again.  Ever 
since  that  time  have  the  souls  of  the  faithful  been 
preparing  and  watching  for  that  coming.  So,  then, 
there  are  two  feelings  which  belong  to  this  Supper  — 
abasement  and  triumph ; abasement,  because  every- 
thing that  tells  of  Christ’s  sacrifice  reminds  us  of  human 
guilt ; and  triumph,  because  the  idea  of  His  coming 
again,  without  sin  unto  salvation,”  is  full  of  highest 
rapture.  These  two  feelings  are  intended  to  go  hand 
in  hand  through  life,  for  that  sadness  is  not  Christian 
but  morbid,  which  has  not  in  it  a sense  of  triumph, 
neither  is  joy  Christian  which  is  without  some  sense  of 


164 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


sorrow.  We  dearly  love  the  way  in  which  the  Church 
of  England  celebrates  the  Supper  of  the  Lord,  with  a 
solemn  stillness  so  well  befitting  the  feelings  and  the 
occasion. 

The  next  reason  for  the  institution  of  the  Lord’s 
Supper  is  to  teach  the  communion  of  saints.  The 
symbolic  elements  themselves  are  intended  to  teach  the 
Church’s  unity.  The  feeling  of  unity  in  the  Church 
is  that  which  belongs  to  fellow-countrymen  meeting  in 
a foreign  land,  or  to  ancient  warriors  who  have  fought 
side  by  side  in  the  same  battle,  and  meet  in  recollection 
of  dangers  shared  together.  So  is  it  with  us ; we  are 
fellow  soldiers  and  fellow  pilgrims.  This  relationship 
can  alone  be  perpetual : the  relation  between  father 
and  child  changes  even  in  this  short  existence  to  friend- 
ship ; even  the  marriage  relationship  is  only  for  this 
life,  for  in  heaven  they  neither  marry  nor  are  given  in 
marriage.  While  all  other  ties  shall  be  dissolved,  God 
stamps  on  this  alone  something  of  His  own  Eternity  : 
united  in  Christ,  vou  are  united  for  ever. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


165 


LECTURE  XXII. 

January  5,  1852. 

1 Corinthians,  xu.  1-31.  — Now  concerning  spiritual  gifts,  breth- 
ren, I would  not  have  you  ignorant.  — Ye  know  that  ye  were  Gen- 
tiles, carried  away  unto  these  dumb  idols,  even  as  ye  were  led.  — 
Wherefore  I give  you  to  understand,  that  no  man  speaking  by  the 
spirit  of  God  calleth  Jesus  accursed  : and  that  no  man  can  say  that 
Jesus  is  the  Lord,  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  — Now  there  are  diversi- 
ties of  gifts,  but  the  same  Spirit.  — And  there  are  differences  of  ad- 
ministrations, but  the  same  Lord.  — And  there  are  diversities  of 
operations,  but  it  is  the  same  God  which  worketh  all  in  all.  — But 
the  manifestation  of  the  Spirit  is  given  to  every  man  to  profit  withal, 

— For  to  one  is  given  by  the  Spirit  the  word  of  wisdom;  to  another 
the  word  of  knowledge  by  the  same  Spirit;  — To  another  faith  by  the 
same  Spirit  ; to  another  the  gifts  of  healing  by  the  same  Spirit ; — To 
another  the  working  of  miracles;  to  another  prophecy;  to  another 
discerning  of  spirits ; to  another  divers  kinds  of  tongues ; to  another 
the  interpretation  of  tongues  : — But  all  these  worketh  that  one  and 
the  selfsame  Spirit,  dividing  to  every  man  severally  as  he  will.  — For 
as  the  body  is  one,  and  hath  many  members,  and  all  the  members 
of  that  one  body,  being  many,  are  one  body  : so  also  is  Christ.  — 
For  by  one  Spirit  are  we  all  baptized  into  one  body,  whether  we  be 
Jews  or  Gentiles,  whether  we  be  bond  or  free  ; and  have  been  all 
made  to  drink  into  one  Spirit.  — For  the  body  is  not  one  member, 
but  many.  — If  the  foot  shall  say.  Because  I am  not  the  hand,  I am 
not  of  the  body ; is  it  therefore  not  of  the  body  ? — And  if  the  ear 
shall  say.  Because  I am  not  the  eye,  I am  not  of  the  body;  is  it  there- 
fore not  of  the  body  ? — If  the  whole  body  were  an  eye,  where  were 
the  hearing  ? — If  the  whole  were. hearing,  where  were  the  smelling? 

— But  now  hath  God  set  the  members  every  one  of  them  in  the  body, 
as  it  hath  pleased  Him.  — And  if  they  were  all  one  member,  where 
were  the  body  ? — But  now  are  they  many  members,  yet  but  one 
body.  — And  the  eye  cannot  say  unto  the  hand,  I have  no  need  of 
thee  : nor  again  the  head  to  the  feet,  I have  no  need  of  you.  — Nay, 
much  more  those  members  of  the  body,  which  seem  to  be  more  fee- 
ble, are  necessary : — And  those  members  of  the  body,  which  we 
think  to  be  less  honorable,  upon  these  we  bestow  more  abundant 
honor;  and  our  uncomely  parts  have  more  abundant  comeliness.  — 
For  our  comely  parts  have  no  need  : but  God  hath  tempered  the 
body  together,  having  given  more  abundant  honor  to  that  part  which 
lacked  : — That  there  should  be  no  schism  in  the  body;  but  that  the 
members  should  have  the  same  care  one  for  another.  — And  whether 
one  member  suffer,  all  the  members  suffer  with  it;  or  one  member 


1G(3 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ERISTLES 


be  honored,  all  the  members  rejoice  with  it.  — Now  ye  are  the  body 
of  Christ  and  membei  s in  particular.  — And  God  hath  set  some  in 
the  church,  first  Apostles,  secondarily  prophets,  thirdly  teachers, 
after  that  miracles,  then  gifts  of  healings,  helps,  governments,  diver- 
sities of  tongues.  — Are  all  apostles  ? are  all  prophets  ? are  all  teach- 
ers ? are  all  workers  of  miracles?  — Have  all  the  gifts  of  healing  ? 
do  all  speak  with  tongues  ? do  all  interpret  ? — But  covet  earnestly 
the  best  gifts:  and  yet  shew  I unto  you  a more  excellent  way.” 


In  the  course  of  this  exposition,  we  liave  often  had 
to  remind  ourselves  that  this  Epistle  was  addressed  to 
a Church  in  a state  of  faction.  One  cause  of  rivalry 
was  respecting  the  merits  of  their  respective  teachers  ; 
another  cause  of  rivalry  was  the  endowments  of  various 
kinds  given  to  the  members  of  the  Church.  Instead  of 
occupying  and  spending  themselves  in  the  blessed  work 
of  using  these  endowments  to  the  edification  of  the 
Church,  they  spent  their  time  in  quarrelling  about  the 
precedence  which  should  be  given  to  these  different 
gifts.  This  was  the  natural  result  of  great  spiritual  ac- 
tivity : it  is  so  in  politics : whenever  there  is  freedom 
and  earnestness  in  debate,  there  will  assuredly  arise  dis- 
sensions. Well  did  St.  Paul  know  that  there  must  be 
heresies  and  factions  among  them  ; but  he  would  not 
say  that  schism  was  a trifle  : it  might  be  that  earnest- 
ness could  not  exist  without  it,  but  yet  he  refused  to 
say  that  schism  was  right.  This  chapter  teaches  two 
things : In  it  St.  Paul  sets  himself  to  discuss  spiritual 
gifts  and  inspiration.  First,  the  Apostle  lays  down  a 
broad  general  principle  respecting  spiritual  inspiration  ; 
secondly,  he  determines  the  place  and  value  of  different 
degrees  of  spiritual  inspiration. 

First  he  lays  down  the  general  principle  respecting 
inspiration  in  the  third  verse.  No  man  can  say  that 
Jesus  is  the  Lord,  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost ! ” This 
made  the  broad  separation  between  the  Christian 
Church  and  the  Gentile  world.  This,  the  great  bond 
of  Christians,  St.  Paul  tells  us,  is  far  above  all  distinc- 
tions as  to  the  degree  of  spiritual  gifts  or  inspiration. 
It  is  of  far  more  importance  to  ascertain  that  a man  is 
a Christian  than  to  find  out  what  sort  of  Christian  he 
is.  This  he  tells  us  in  the  fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  verses. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


167 


In  other  words,  our  Christianity  is  a fact  far  above  our 
special  and  particular  endowments.  Not  that  in  which 
we  differ  from  other  Christians,  but  that  in  which  we 
differ  from  the  world  lying  in  wickedness  ; in  that  con- 
sists our  distinction  in  the  sight  of  God.  In  the  thir- 
teenth verse  he  appeals  to  the  sacraments  : does  baptism 
teach  of  a difference  between  Christians  ? does  it  not 
rather  teach  that  all  the  baptized  are  baptized  into  one 
body  ? There  are  varieties,  differences  — yes,  says  the 
Apostle,  but  they  are  all  of  ‘‘  the  selfsame  Spirit.” 

And  now,  brethren,  let  us  bring  this  home  personally 
to  ourselves : for  the  teaching  of  the  pulpit  loses  its 
force  if  mere  abstract  truths  are  stated  without  applying 
them  to  ourselves,  for  human  nature  is  the  same 
throughout  all  ages.  What  was  it  that  waked  up  the 
energies  of  these  Corinthians  most?  Was  it  that 
which  stimulated  the  sublime  spirit  of  the  Apostle  at 
Athens  when  he  saw  the  city  wholly  given  over  to 
idolatry  ? — or  was  it  not  rather  the  difference  between 
sect  and  sect,  party  and  party  ? My  Christian  breth- 
ren, what  is  it  that  wakes  up,  in  all  their  force,  the  po- 
lemical energies  of  this  day  ? Is  it  opposition  to 
sensuality,  to  pride,  to  vice,  to  evil  generally  ? — or  is 
it  opposition  to  some  doctrine  held  by  this  or  that  sec- 
tion of  the  Christian  world  ? Against  whom  are  all  the 
energies  of  Christian  teachers  directed  ? Is  it  against 
the  oppressor,  the  tyrant,  the  seducer  ? — or  is  it  against 
some  poor  erring  Christian,  who,  it  may  be,  is  wrong  in 
doctrine,  but  is  trying  with  all  his  heart  to  live  the  Life 
of  Christ?  Let  me  bring  this  more  closely  home  to 
you,  and  earnestly  entreat  the  members  of  this  congre- 
gation to  sever  themselves  from  that  bitter  spirit  of  con- 
troversy which  is  tearing  asunder  Christian  society  in 
this  town.  My  Christian  brethren,  if  Christ  be  your 
Master,  what  in  this  world  is  your  foe?  Not  Tracta- 
rianism  nor  Dissent,  neither  Popery  nor  Evangelism  : 
these  may  be  more  or  less  forms  of  error  ; but  they 
who  hold  them  are  your  brethren,  battling  against  the 
same  evil  as  you  are.  Your  foe  in  this  world  is  vice, 
the  devil  nature,  in  you  and  in  me  ; it  is  in  ourselves 


168 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


that  our  foe  is  ; conquer  that^  spend  half  the  energy  in 
trampling  that  down  which  is  spent  in  religious  contro- 
versy with  Christians,  and  the  Kingdom  of  God  will 
soon  be  established  in  this  world ; and  if  you  will  not, 
then  the  Word  of  God  gives  this  solemn  warning,  If 
ye  bite  and  devour  one  another,  take  heed  that  ye  be 
not  consumed  one  of  another.” 

We  pass  on,  secondly,  to  consider  the  place  and  value 
assigned  by  St.  Paul  to  these  differences  of  spiritual 
gifts.  He  states  the  fact  of  that  difference  from  the 
eighth  to  the  tenth  verses,  and  the  principle  of  diversities 
in  the  seventeeth  and  eighteenth  verses.  He  begins 
by  stating  these  as  the  very  conditions  of  Christian 
unity.  God  has  given  to  one  man  eloquence,  to  another 
business-like  habits,  to  some  exquisitely  fine  feelings,  to 
others  a more  blunted  feeling ; for  even  that  is  a gift, 
without  which  some  duties  could  not  be  suitably  per- 
formed. The  anatomist  tells  us  that  precisely  as  we 
ascend  in  the  scale  of  being,  so  do  we  find  greater  di- 
versity in  our  complexity.  Thus  is  it  that  we  have  the 
distinction  between  a society  and  an  association ; arti- 
ficial association  binds  man  to  man  on  the  principle  of 
similarity,  natural  society  binds  men  together  in  diver- 
sity. The  idea  of  the  Church  presented  in  the  Bible 
is  that  of  a family,  which  certainly  is  not  a union  of 
similarity,  for  the  father  differs  from  the  mother,  the 
child  from  the  parent,  brother  from  sister,  servant  from 
child,  and  yet  together  they  form  a most  blessed  type  of 
unity.  St.  Paul  carries  on  this  beautiful  principle,  and 
draws  out  of  it  special  personal  duties  ; he  says  that 
gifts  are  granted  to  individuals  for  the  sake  of  the  whole 
Church.  As  he  expresses  it  in  another  part:  No  man 
liveth  to  himself,  and  no  man  dieth  to  himself.”  After 
this,  he  carries  on  the  application  further,  and  shows 
tliat  tlie  principle  branches  out  into  a twofold  duty: 
first,  the  duty  of  those  gifted  with  the  inferior  gifts  ; 
and  after  that,  tlie  duty  of  those  gifted  with  the  higher 
]:)()wers.  The  duties  of  tliose  possessed  of  inferior  gifts 
he  states  to  be  two  ; not  to  envy,  and  not  to  despond. 
First,  not  to  envy: — Observe  liere  the  difference  be- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


169 


tween  the  Christian  doctrine  of  unity  and  equality,  and 
the  world’s  doctrine  by  levelling  all  to  one  standard, 
The  intention  of  God  with  respect  to  the  body  is  not 
that  the  rude  hand  should  have  the  delicacy  of  the  eye, 
or  the  foot  have  the  power  of  the  brain.  The  intention 
of  God  is  to  proclaim  the  real  equality  of  each  in  mu- 
tual sympathy  and  love.  The  second  duty  of  those 
with  inferior  gifts  is  not  to  despond.  There  are  few 
temptations  more  common  to  ardent  spirits  than  that 
which  leads  them  to  repine  at  the  lot  in  which  they  are 
cast,  believing  that  in  some  other  situation  they  could 
serve  God  better ; and  therefore  to  every  such  man  St. 
Paul  speaks,  telling  him  that  it  is  his  duty  to  try  to  be 
himself : simply  to  try  to  do  his  own  duty  ; for  here  in 
this  world  we  are  nothing  apart  from  the  strange  and 
curious  clockwork  of  the  world  ; and  if  each  man  had 
the  spirit  of  Self-surrender,  the  Spirit  of  the  Cross,  it 
would  not  matter  to  him  whether  he  were  doing  the 
work  of  the  mainspring,  or  of  one  of  the  inferior  parts. 
Lastly,  St.  Paul  applies  this  principle  to  the  duty  of 
those  gifted  with  higher  powers  ; this  is  also  a twofold 
duty,  that  of  humility  and  sympathy.  They  were  not 
to  despise  those  who  were  inferior.  As  with  the  natu- 
ral body,  the  rudest  parts  are  the  most  useful,  and  the 
delicate  parts  require  most  care,  so  is  it  with  the  body 
politic  ; the  meanest  trades  are  those  with  which  we  can 
least  dispense ; a nation  may  exist  without  an  astron- 
omer or  philosopher,  but  the  day-laborer  is  essential  to 
the  existence  of  man.  The  second  duty  of  the  more 
highly  gifted  is  taught  in  the  twenty-sixth  verse.  The 
spirit  and  the  law  of  the  Life  of  Christ  is  to  be  that 
of  every  member  of  the  Church,  and  the  law  of  the 
Life  of  Christ  is  that  of  sympathy.  Until  we  have 
learnt  something  of  this  spirit,  we  cannot  have  a Church 
at  all.  How  little,  during  eighteen  hundred  years, 
have  the  hearts  of  men  been  got  to  beat  together  ! 
Nor  can  we  say  that  this  is  the  fault  of  the  capitalists 
and  the  masters  only ; it  is  the  fault  of  the  servants  and 
dependents  also. 


15 


170 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XXIII. 

November  16,  1851. 

1 Corinthians,  xii.  31 ; xiii.  1-3.  — “ But  covet  earnestly  the  best 
gifts  : and  yet  show  I unto  you  a more  excellent  way.  — Though  I 
speak  with  the  tongues  of  men  and  of  angels,  and  have  not  charity, 
I am  become  as  sounding  brass,  or  a tinkling  cymbal.  — And  though 
I have  the  gift  of  prophecy,  and  understand  all  mysteries,  and  all 
knowledge;  and  though  I have  all  faith,  so  that  I could  remove  moun- 
tains, and  have  not  charity,  I am  nothing.  — And  though  I bestow 
all  my  goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and  though  I give  my  body  to  be 
burned,  and  have  not  charity,  it  profiteth  me  nothing.” 

The  twelfth  chapter  of  this  epistle  discusses  the  gifts 
of  the  Spirit,  the  thirteenth  contrasts  them  with  the 
grace  of  Charity  or  Love,  but  the  connection  between 
the  two  is  unintelligible  unless  the  last  verse  of  the  former 
be  joined  to  the  first  of  the  latter : It  is  the  link  be- 
tween both  chapters  : Covet  earnestly  the  best  gifts  : 
and  yet  shew  I unto  you  a more  excellent  way.”  Now 
the  more  excellent  way  is  Charity. 

We  will  consider,  then,  the  Christian  estimate  of 
gifts. 

I.  In  themselves. 

11.  In  reference  to  graces. 

I.  The  way  in  which  a Christian  should  esteem 
gifts. 

Let  me  first  show  that  this  rule  applies  to  ourselves  ; 
for  it  might  be  doubted,  since  the  Corinthian  gifts  were 
in  y)art  wliat  we  call  miraculous,  while  ours  are  natural. 
Rut  you  will  find  that  in  all  essential  particulars  the 
resemblance  is  complete.  The  gifts  of  the  Church  of 
Corinth  were  bestowed  according  to  (lod’s  pleasure  : 
they  were  “ divided  to  every  man  severally  as  He 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


171 


willed.”  They  were  profitable  to  others  : The  mani- 
festation of  the  Spirit  is  given  to  every  man  to  profit 
withal.”  They  were  not  the  highest  perfection  of  hu- 
man nature,  for  a man  might  have  them  and  yet  perish. 
So  is  it  with  ours  : we  have  gifts  freely  granted,  capable 
of  profiting  others,  and  yet  capable  of  being  separated 
from  personal  or  saving  holiness.  Therefore,  to  all 
such  gifts  essentially  coinciding  with  the  nature  of  the 
Corinthian  gifts,  the  Apostle’s  rule  must  apply;  and 
his  rule  is  this : Covet  earnestly  the  best  gifts.” 

First,  then,  consider  what  a gift  is.  It  is  that  in 
which  our  main  strength  lies.  One  man  is  remarkable 
for  intellectual,  and  another  for  moral  qualifications. 
One  is  highly  sensitive,  and  another  firm  and  unim- 
pressionable. One  has  exquisite  taste,  and  another 
capacity  for  business.  One  nation  is  inventive,  and 
another,  like  the  English,  persevering  and  able  to  im- 
prove inventions.  It  is  well  for  us  to  dwell  on  this, 
because  in  our  unchristian  way  of  viewing  things,  we 
are  apt  to  forget  they  are  gifts,  because  they  seem  so 
simple.  But  all  God’s  gifts  are  not  sublime.  You 
would  all  acknowledge  prophecy  to  be  a gift,  but  St. 
Paul  says  the  humblest  faculties  are  also  gifts.  The 
eye  is  precious,  but  the  foot,  in  its  way,  is  no  less  so. 

Next,  observe  that  all  these  are  gifts,  but  sometimes 
we  fancy  they  are  not,  because  sad  and  melancholy 
moralists  remind  us  that  these  things  are  vain.  Beauty 
is  fleeting,  such  men  cry ; strength  is  soon  but  labor 
and  sorrow.  Sound  sense  does  not  save : Life  is 
thorny,  and  youth  is  vain.  The  path  of  glory  leads 
but  to  the  grave.”  A noble  name,  an  honored  position, 
an  existence  of  fame,  what  are  these  but  dreams?  True, 
all  these  are  transient ; and  because  so,  we  are  forbid- 
den to  set  our  hearts  upon  them : the  world  passeth 
away,  and  the  lust  thereof.”  But  still,  in  spite  of 
moralizing,  men  covet  them.  And  the  Apostle  says  it 
is  right : God  gave  them : do  you  honor  Him  by  de- 
spising them?  They  are  good,  but  not  the  higher 
good.  Good  so  long  as  they  are  desired  in  subservience 
to  the  greater  good,  but  evil  if  they  are  put  in  the  place 
of  this 


172 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Thirdly,  remark  that  they  are  to  be  earnestly  culti- 
vated. 

There  is  a mistake  into  which  religions  people  are 
apt  to  fall,  but  which  the  Apostle  avoids  : and  this  is 
one  of  the  negative  marks  of  his  inspiration.  The 
Apostles  were  never  fanatical ; but  ordinary  men , when 
strongly  influenced,  exaggerate.  Now  the  world  makes 
very  little  of  charity  ; and  religious  men,  perceiving 
the  transcendent  excellence  of  this  grace,  make  very 
little  of  talents  : nay,  some  depreciate  them  as  almost 
worthless.  They  talk  contemptuously  of  the  mere 
moral  man.”  They  speak  of  cleverness  and  gifts  of 
intellect,  as  in  themselves  bad  and  dangerous.  They 
weed  the  finest  works  of  human  genius  from  their 
libraries.  And  hence  the  religious  character  has  a 
tendency  to  become  feeble,  to  lose  all  breadth  of  view, 
and  all  manly  grasp  of  realities.  Now,  on  tlie  contra- 
ry, .St.  Paul  prays  that  the  whole  soul,  Wv/rj,  the 
natural  man  as  well  as  the  spirit,  may  be  preserved 
blameless  till  the  coming  of  Christ.” 

And  again  he  allows  a distinction  — the  best  gifts.” 

The  same  Apostle  who  so  earnestly  urged  contentment 
with  the  gifts  we  have,  and  forbade  contemptuous  scorn 
of  others  with  feeble  gifts,  bids  us  yet  to  aspire.  And 
just  as  St.  Peter  said,  Add  to  your  faith,  virtue ; and 
to  virtue,  knowledge ; and  to  knowledge,  temperance ; ” 
so  would  St.  Paul  have  said,  Add  to  your  nobility  of 
rank,  nobleness  of  mind ; to  your  naturally-strong 
constitution,  health  by  exercise  ; to  your  memory,  judg- 
ment ; to  your  power  of  imitating,  invention.”  He 
permits  no  dream  of  fantastic  equality,  no  pretence  that 
all  gifts  are  equal,  or  all  alike  precious.  He  never 
would  have  said  that  the  builder  wlio  executed  was 
equal  to  the  architect  who  planned. 

J>e  contented,  yet  aspire  : that  should  be  the  faith 
of  all,  and  the  two  are  (piite  compatible.  And  there 
arises  from  such  a belief  the  possibility  of  generous 
admiration  : all  the  miserable  shutting-up  of  ourselves 
in  sujKirciliousness  is  done  away.  Desirous  of  reaching 
somethiim  higher,  we  recognize  and  love  what  is  above 

o o ^ o 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


173 


ourselves ; and  this  is  the  condition  of  excellence,  for 
we  become  that  which  we  admire. 

II.  The  estimate  of  gifts  in  comparison  with  graces. 

They  are  less  excellent  than  charity.  They  are  not 
the  perfection  of  our  nature.  He  who  treads  the  bril- 
liant road  of  the  highest  accomplishments  is,  as  a man, 
inferior  to  him  who  treads  the  path  of  Love.  For  in 
the  spiritual  world  a man  is  measured  not  by  his  genius, 
but  by  his  likeness  to  God.  Intellect  is  not  divine  ; Love 
is  the  most  essential  of  all  the  attributes  of  God.  God 
does  not  reason,  nor  remember,  but  He  loves.  Thus, 
to  the  Apostle’s  mind,  there  was  emptiness  in  eloquence, 
nothingness  in  knowledge  and  even  in  faith,  uselessness 
in  liberality  and  sacrifice,  where  Love  was  not.  And 
none  could  be  better  qualified  than  he  to  speak.  In  all 
these  gifts  he  was  pre-eminent ; none  taught  like  him 
the  philosophy  of  Christianity.  None  had  so  strong  a 
faith,  nor  so  deep  a spirit  of  self-sacrifice.  In  no  other 
writings  are  we  so  refined  and  exalted  by  ^Ghe  thoughts 
which  breathe  and  words  that  burn.”  And  yet,  in 
solitary  pre-eminence  above  all  these  gifts,  he  puts  the 
grace  of  Love. 


15* 


174 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XXIV. 

April  25,  1852. 

1 Corinthians,  xiii.  4 - 13.  — “Charity  suffereth  long,  and  is  kind; 
charity  eiivieth  not;  charity  vaunteth  not  itself,  is  not  puffed  up,  — 
Uorh  not  behave  itself  unseemly,  seeketh  not  her  own,  is  not  easily 
provoked,  thinketh  no  evil;  — Rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity,  but  re- 
joiceth  in  the  truth;  — Beareth  all  things,  believeth  all  things, 
hopeth  all  things,  endureth  all  things.  — Charity  never  faileth  : 
but  whether  there  be  prophecies,  they  shall  fail;  whether  there  be 
tongues,  they  shall  cease;  whether  there  be  knowledge,  it  shall 
vanish  away.  — - For  we  know  in  part,  and  we  prophesy  in  part.  — 
But  when  that  which  is  perfect  is  come,  then  that  which  is  in  part 
shall  be  done  away,  — When  I was  a child,  I spake  as  a child,  I 
understood  as  a child,  I thought  as  a child  : but  when  I became  a 
man,  I put  away  childish  things.  — For  now  we  see  through  a glass, 
darkly;  but  then  face  to  face  : now  I know  in  part;  but  then  shall 
I know  even  as  also  I am  known.  — And  now  abideth  faith,  hope, 
charity,  these  three;  but  the  greatest  of  these  is  charity.” 


It  is  a notable  circumstance  that  the  most  elaborate 
description  given  in  Scripture  of  the  grace  of  Charity 
is  from  the  pen,  not  of  St.  John,  who  was  pre- 
eminently the  man  of  Love,  but  of  the  Apostle  Paul, 
whose  great  characteristic  was  his  soaring  Faith. 

To  each  of  the  Apostles  was  given  a peculiar  work ; 
each  had  one  feature  in  his  character  predominant 
over  the  rest.  If  we  had  been  asked  what  this  was 
in  St.  Paul,  we  should  have  said  Faith ; for  he  has  as- 
signed to  faith  that  high  position  whicli  makes  it  the 
efficacious  instrument  in  justifying  the  soul.  St.  John, 
on  tlie  contrary,  was  the  Apostle  of  Love.  To  him 
we  owe  tlie  pregnant  expressions,  God  is  love  ; ” 

Little  cliildren,  love  one  another ; ” He  that  loveth 
dwelletli  in  God,  and  God  in  him.”  And  yet  it  was 
not  to  him  that  the  office  was  assigned  of  illustrating 
and  exi)oundiiig  liis  own  especial  grace,  but  to  one*of 
a very  diMci'cnt  character  — one  in  whom  the  man-like 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


175 


predominated  over  the  woman-like ; a man  daring,  im- 
petuous, intellectual ; one  in  whom  all  the  qualities  of 
the  man  strongly  flourished,  and  who  yet  emphatically 
declares  all  those  — faith,  great  strength,  intellect,  gifts, 
manliness  — to  be  inferior  to  Love.  There  are  some 
very  intelligible  reasons  for  this  arrangement  in  God’s 
providential  dealings.  If  the  Apostle  Paul  had  exalted 
the  grace  of  Faith  only,  and  St.  John  that  of  Love 
only,  we  might  have  conceived  that  each  magnified 
especially  his  own  gift,  and  that  his  judgment  was 
guided  by  his  peculiarities  of  temperament.  But  when 
the  gifted  Apostle,  at  the  same  time  that  he  acknowl- 
edges the  worth  of  talents,  counts  them  as  nothing  in 
comparison  of  Love,  no  doubt  remains.  It  is  as  if  he 
would  show  that  the  graces  of  the  Christian  character 
may  be  mixed  in  different  proportions,  but  must  all  be 
found  in  every  one  who  lives  the  life  of  Christ.  For 
no  man  can  conquer  the  world,  except  by  Faith  ; no 
man  can  resemble  God,  except  by  Love.  It  was  by 
Faith  that  St.  Paul  removed  mountains  of  impos- 
sibility ; it  was  by  Love  that  he  became  like  God. 

Our  subject,  then,  is  Charity : we  will  consider  two 
points. 

I.  Its  description. 

II.  The  reason  of  its  superiority  to  Gifts. 

I.  The  description  of  this  grace  is  contained  in  the 
fourth  to  the  seventh  verses. 

This  description  is  needed,  because  no  single  word 
in  any  language  will  express  the  fulness  of  the  Chris- 
tian grace  here  spoken  of.  Charity  is  by  conventional 
usage  appropriated  to  one  particular  form  of  St.  Paul’s 
charity,  almsgiving,  and  we  cannot  use  the  term  with- 
out thinking  of  this.  Love  is  appropriated  to  another 
human  feeling,  given  by  God  as  one  of  the  means 
whereby  we  are  freed  from  self,  but  which,  in  its  high- 
est forms,  is  too  personal  and  too  exclusive  to  be  the 
Christian  grace ; in  its  lowest  forms,  too  earthly.  To 
the  Greeks  the  world  was  saturated  with  this  earthly 


17i3 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


idea  of  love,  and  it  needed  tliis  elaborate  description  to 
purge  from  their  minds  the  thoughts  connected  with  it. 

Benevolence  or  Philanthropy  is  somewhat  nearer, 
but  still  insufficient  to  be  what  St.  Paul  meant.  Be- 
nevolence is  too  often  merely  passive,  too  often  merely 
instinctive  : a sentiment,  and  nothing  more.  Besides, 
many  a man  is  actively  benevolent,  charitable  among 
the  poor,  full  of  schemes  and  plans  for  the  benefit  of 
others,  and  yet  utterly  deficient  in  that  religious  sense 
which  accompanies  the  Christian  grace  of  Love. 
Therefore,  St.  Paul  gives  this  exquisite  description  of 
what  he  means  by  the  word,  distinguishing  it  from 
almsgiving,  passion,  sentiment,  and  philanthropy,  while 
something  of  them  all  is  contained  within  it. 

Upon  this  description  I make  two  remarks. 

1.  Observe  that  many  of  those  qualities  which  the 
Apostle  names  as  characteristic  of  charity  are  what 
we  should  assign  to  other  graces  ; for  example,  patience, 

she  suffereth  long,  and  is  kind  ; ” generosity,  she 
envieth  not ; ” humility,  she  vaunteth  not  herself;  ” 
dignified  demeanor,  doth  not  behave  itself  unseemly  ; ’’ 
peaceableness,  she  seeketh  not  her  own  ; ” good  tem- 
per, she  is  not  easily  provoked ; ” innocence  and 
unsuspiciousness,  she  thinketh  no  evil;”  love  of 
realities,  ‘‘  she  rejoiceth  in  the  truth.”  For  St.  Paul 
saw  down  to  the  root ; he  saw  that  it  was  perfectly 
possible  for  any  one  of  these  to  exist  alone,  but  it  was 
in  the  co-existence  of  them  all  that  the  real  life  of  the 
under-root  of  Love  was  shown. 

For  example,  you  may  find  a man  rejoicing  in  the 
truth,  and  generous  — nay,  good-tempered  too  ; but 
there  is  in  his  deportment  a certain  restlessness,  a want 
of  ease,  and  a desire  to  eclipse  others : the  Apostle 
would  describe  him  as  behaving  himself  unseemly. 
Well,  then,  he  is  good  tempered,  he  is  generous,  but 
he  lacks  (diarity,  which  pervades  every  grace,  coloring 
them  all,  as  our  life  gives  hues  to  the  hair,  the  lips  and 
the  eyes.  J^\>r  real  love  would  have  made  him  shrink 
from  giving  pain  by  showing  su|)eriority.  In  his  desire 
to  appciar  better  than  others,  self  is  uppermost,  whereas 
Love  is  the  abnegation  and  forgetfulness  of  self. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


177 


2.  I make  another  remark : for  you  will  observe 
only  general  remarks  can  be  made  : complete  exposi- 
tion is  out  of  the  question  ; every  one  of  these  sen- 
tences might  furnish  matter  for  a sermon.  Besides, 
to  illustrate  or  improve  this  description  would  be  to 
gild  refined  gold  ; ” gold  thrice  refined  in  the  eloquence 
and  heart  of  St.  Paul. 

The  second  remark  I make  is,  that  the  Apostle  here 
describes  a Christian  gentleman.  There  is  a thing 
wdiich  we  call  high-breeding  or  courtesy : its  name 
proclaims  that  it  is  the  manners  of  the  Court,  and  it  is 
supposed  to  belong  exclusively  to  persons  highly  born. 
There  is  another  thing  which  we  call  Christian  cour- 
tesy ; the  difference  between  the  two  is,  that  high- 
breeding  gracefully  insists  upon  its  own  rights  ; Chris- 
tian courtesy  gracefully  remembers  the  rights  of  others. 
In  the  narrow,  limited  sense  of  the  word,  gentleman  ” 
can  only  be  applicable  to  persons  born  in  a certain  class, 
and  gentle  ” is  only  the  old  English  word,  genteel,” 
but  in  the  larger,  higher  meaning,  it  belongs  to  those 
who  are  gentle  in  character  rather  than  in  blood ; and 
just  as  “ gentle  ” has  been  corrupted  into  “ genteel,” 
so  the  words  gentleman,”  ^‘courtesy,”  politeness,” 
have  come  to  be  considered  the  exclusive  property  of 
one  class. 

The  Spirit  of  Christ  does  really  what  high-breeding 
only  does  outwardly.  A high-bred  man  never  forgets 
himself,  controls  his  temper,  does  nothing  in  excess,  is 
urbane,  dignified,  and  that  even  to  persons  whom  he  is 
inwardly  cursing  in  his  heart,  or  wishing  far  away. 
But  a Christian  is  what  the  world  seems  to  be.  Love 
gives  him  a delicate  tact  which  never  offends,  because 
it  is  full  of  sympathy.  It  discerns  far  off  what  would 
hurt  fastidious  feelings,  feels  with  others,  and  is  ever  on 
the  watch  to  anticipate  their  thoughts.  And  hence  the 
only  true  deep  refinement  — that  which  lies  not  on  the 
surface,  but  goes  deep  down  into  the  character  — comes 
from  Christian  love. 

And  hence,  too,  we  understand  what  is  meant  by 
elevating  and  refining  the  poorer  classes.  My  brethren, 


178 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Christianity  desires  to  make  them  all  gentlemen.  Do 
not  be  alarmed ! for  it  is  not  in  the  world’s  sense  of  the 
word,  nor  in  the  socialistic,  but  only  in  the  Christian 
meaning,  that  we  would  see  them  all  refined.  And 
assuredly,  if  Christian  charity  were  universal,  if  every 
man  were  his  brother’s  teacher,  a rude  clown,  or  un- 
mannered  peasant,  or  coarse-minded  workman,  could 
not  be  met  with.  But  these,  you  say,  are  only  dreams, 
and  that  it  is  absurd  to  expect  or  aim  at  the  refinement 
of  the  working  classes.  Tell  me,  then,  is  it  equally 
absurd  to  expect  that  they  may  become  Christian  ? 
And  if  they  are  Christian  , can  they  be  so  far  unrefined  ? 
Only  read  this  description  of  Christian  charity,  and 
conceive  it  existing  in  a peasant’s  breast.  Could  he  be 
uncourteous,  rude,  selfish,  and  inconsiderate  of  the 
feelings,  opinions,  and  thoughts  of  those  around  him  ? 

If  he  did  not  behave  himself  unseemly,  if  he  suffered 
long  and  was  kind,  or  was  not  easily  provoked,  but 
.bore  all  things  quietly,”  would  he  not  be  a gentleman 
in  heart  ? 

II.  We  come  to  the  reasons  for  the  superiority  of 
Christian  love  to  the  gifts  spoken  of  in  the  last  chap- 
ter. 

1.  Its  permanence.  Charity  never  faileth.” 

In  contrast  with  this,  Paul  shows  the  temporary 
character  of  those  marvellous  gifts,  which  we  find 
mentioned  in  the  eighth  verse : Charity  endures,  but 
prophecy,  tongues,  and  knowledge  fail.”  But  let  us 
take  them  in  the  modern,  and  not  in  the  miraculous 
sense : for  what  the  Corinthians  got  by  miracle  we 
now  obtain  by  the  persevering  use  of  our  natural  facul- 
ties. Prophecy  means  the  power  of  interpreting  Scrip- 
ture. Pliis,  doubtless,  is  a precious  gift,  but  only 
valuable  as  means  to  an  end  ; and  when  that  is  attained, 
tlie  preciousness  of  the  gift  immediately  ceases.  ‘‘  A 
time  will  come  when  they  shall  not  teach  every  man 
his  neighbor,  saying.  Know  the  Lord,  but  all  shall  know 
Jlim,  from  tlie  least  to  the  greatest.”  All  those  quali- 
licatioris  which  go  to  make  up  the  character  of  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


179 


expounder  of  Scripture,  such  as  eloquence,  critical 
knowledge,  biblical  lore,  what  are  they  ? They  are 
only  designed  for  Time,  and  soon  they  shall  be  obsolete. 
Tongues  also,  of  which  the  Apostle  here  speaks,  shall 
‘‘  fail  ” — that  is,  pass  away. 

They  were  then  miraculous.  What  they  were  we 
shall  explain  in  the  approaching  lecture  : now,  how- 
ever, they  are  naturally  acquired.  It  is  remarked  that 
this  faculty  gives  more  cause  for  vanity  than  any  other. 
He  who  knows  two  languages,  is  able  to  express  his 
thoughts  to  two  persons  : this  is  very  valuable,  but  it  is 
not  necessarily  a double  means  of  thought.  And  yet 
we  see  that  the  expert  linguist  is  generally  found  more 
proud  of  his  gifts,  and  more  vain,  than  the  deep  thinker 
and  knower : so  with  the  Corinthians,  this  gift  produced 
more  vanity  than  the  more  useful  ones  of  prophecy  and 
teaching. 

And  yet  suppose  a man  had  known  fifty  languages 
in  the  days  of  St.  Paul,  how  many  — or  rather  how 
few — would  be  of  use  now?  The  dialects  of  Parthia, 
Media,  of  the  Elamite,  of  Mesopotamia,  Judaea,  and 
Cappadocia,’’  they  are  now  all  obsolete  : Whether 

there  be  tongues,  they  shall  cease.”  And  knowledge 
also  shall  vanish  away,”  for  it  is  but  a temporary 
state  of  the  human  mind.  For  instance,  that  of  the 
Physician,  which  arises  out  of  the  existence  of  disease : 
were  there  no  disease,  his  knowledge  would  disappear. 
And  it  is  the  same  with  gifts  of  healing:  ” when  the 
time  comes  in  which  “ they  sliall  hunger  no  more,  and 
thirst  no  more,”  when  sickness  and  death  shall  cease, 
this  power  shall  be  needless.  And  so  also  with  the 
knowledge  of  the  lawyer,  which  depends  on  human 
crime : were  there  no  wrongs  done  to  persons  or  prop- 
erty, the  necessity  of  legal  knowledge  would  be  at  an 
end.  All  the  knowledge  hived  in  centuries  by  the 
barrister  and  the  judge  will  vanish  when  Christianity 
reigns  upon  earth. 

Again,  we  see  the  same  with  science,  which  is  ever 
shifting  and  becoming  obsolete.  The  science  of  St. 
Paul’s  day,  the  deep  philosophy  of  the  Greek,  is  only 


180 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTJ.ES 


curious  now  ; for  a brighter  light  has  shone,  and  tlie 
geography,  the  astronomy,  and  the  pliysics  of  that  age 
liave  vanished.  And  this  is  surely  reason  enougli  to 
make  a man  humble  ; for  if  time  so  deals  with  the  man 
of  profoundest  science,  if  in  a few  years  his  knowledge 
cannot  suffice  the  schoolboy,  what  must  be  the  humble- 
ness due  from  us,  who  know  so  little  ? Therefore,  the 
next  time  you  are  inclined  to  be  vain  of  a few  facts, 
or  a little  reading,  or  a smattering  of  science,  pause 
and  think,  that  all  the  knowledge  of  the  great  and  wise 
men  of  the  Apostle  Paul’s  day,  except  the  knowledge 
of  Christ  crucified,  is  worthless  now.  All  they  knew 
has  vanished,  all  has  failed  but  this,  that  they  washed 
their  robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.” 

2.  The  second  reason  is  the  completeness  of  Chris- 
tian love.  Gifts,  knowledge,  tongues  are  only  means 
towards  an  end.  Love  remains  the  completion  and 
perfection  of  our  human  being,  just  as  stem,  flower, 
bud,  and  leaf  in  the  tree  are  all  subservient  to  the 
fruit. 

St.  Paul  uses  two  illustrations  to  make  this  plain. 

When  I was  a child,  I spake  as  a child,  I under- 
stood as  a child,  I thought  as  a child  ; but  when  I 
became  a man,  I put  away  childish  things.”  Now 
we  see  through  a glass  darkly  ; but  then  face  to  face  : 
now  I know  in  part ; but  then  shall  I know  even  as 
also  I am  known.” 

In  the  first,  the  Apostle  evidently  considers  our  hu- 
man existence  as  progressive  ; and  just  what  childhood 
is  to  manhood,  the  most  advanced  manhood  is  to  our 
heavenly  being.  We  put  away  childish  things  in  man- 
hood ; we  shall  put  away  even  manly  or  human  things 
entirely  in  the  spiritual  state.  In  childhood,  there  is 
ionorance  which  fancies  itself  knowledo;e,  there  is  a 
sc‘.l  fish  ness  which  does  not  own  the  wants  of  others, 
there  is  a slavery  to  ])resent  impidses  : but  when  age 
has  tauo-ht  us  how  little  we  know,  has  taught  us  that 
if  sochity  is  to  exist  at  all,  we  must  give  up  some  of 
our  sellishness,  and  lias  taught  us  prudence,  then  man- 
hood puts  away  tlu^  things  of  a child. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


181 


And  so  similarly,  there  are  many  things  now  which 
subserve  a high  purpose,  but  do  not  belong  to  the  high- 
est state.  For  instance,  ambition,  the  last  infirmity  of 
noble  minds ; what  a spur  it  is  to  exertion  ! how  dead- 
ening to  sloth  ! And  if  you  were  to  quench  it  alto- 
gether, how  few  of  the  present  noble  works  would  be 
done  ! Again,  patriotism  is  a virtue,  but  not  the  high- 
est ; you  could  not  dispense  with  it : our  Master  felt  it 
when  on  earth ; He  was  a Jew,  and  felt  deeply  for  His 
country.  But  when  we  enter  into  that  clime,  where 
there  is  neither  Jew  nor  Greek,  bond  nor  free,  then 
patriotism  shall  pass  away. 

Consider  also  friendship,  and  other  particular  attach- 
ments. But  these  are  no  substitutes  for  the  charity 
which  contemplates  likeness  to  Christ,  rather  than  per- 
sonal affinities.  While  on  earth,  Christ  had  personal 

attachments:  a strong  human  affection  for  St.  John, 
...  ' 
from  their  mutual  similarities  of  character.  But  ob- 
serve His  Divine  charity : Who  is  my  mother,  and 
who  are  my  brethren  ? ’’  He  said.  And  then  pointing 
to  His  disciples  — Behold  them  : For,  whosoever  shall 
do  the  will  of  my  Father  which  is  in  Heaven,  the  same 
is  my  brother,  and  sister,  and  mother.”  These  things 
are  manly  and  human  now,  but  will  have  to  be  put 
away  then ; patriotism,  ambition,  exclusive  friendship 
will  then  disappear,  and  be  succeeded  by  higher  im- 
pulses. And  the  last  comparison  is  to  imperfect  vision 
as  contrasted  with  perfect  : now  we  see  through  a 
glass  darkly.”  Glass  in  this  place  more  properly  means 
window,  for  the  ancient  windows  were  made  of  horn, 
or  talc,  or  thin  metal,  through  which  things  were  seen, 
but  in  a dim,  confused,  and  colorless  manner.  So,  now 
we  see  Divine  things  “ darkly.”  We  see  God  through 
the  colored  glass,  as  it  were,  of  our  own  limited  human 
impressions.  ‘^The  Father”  has  scarcely  even  all  the 
poor  conceptions  we  have  gained  from  the  earthly  rela- 
tionship from  which  the  name  is  borrowed.  And  God, 
as  Love,”  is  seen  by  us  only  as  one  who  loves  as  we 
love,  — weakly,  partially,  selfishly.  Heaven,  also,  is 
but  a place  erected  by  our  earthly  imagination.  To 


16 


182 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTI.ES 


the  Indian,  a hunting-ground;  to  the  old  Norseman,  a 
battle  banquet ; to  the  Mahometan,  a place  of  earthly 
rapture ; to  the  man  of  science,  a place  wliere  Nature 
shall  yield  up  all  her  secrets.  We  see  tlirough  a 
glass  darkly : we  know  but  in  part.”  J^ut  just  what 
the  going  out  of  a room  lighted  through  liorn  win- 
dows into  the  clear  daylight  would  be  to  us  now,  will 
be  the  entrance  of  the  purified  spirit  into  God’s  reali- 
ties out  of  this  world  of  shadows  — of  things  half  seen 
— of  restless  dreams.  It  doth  not  yet  appear,” 
says  St.  John,  what  we  shall  be : but  we  know 
that  when  He  shall  appear,  we  shall  be  like  Him,  for 
we  shall  see  Him  as  He  is.”  And  every  man  that 
hath  this  hope  in  Him  purifieth  himself,  even  as  He  is 
pure.” 

Here,  therefore,  we  bring  the  subject  to  a conclusion. 
All  gifts  are  to  be  cultivated ; let  no  Christian  despise 
them.  Every  accomplishment,  every  intellectual  faculty 
that  can  adorn  and  grace  human  nature,  should  be  cul- 
tivated and  polished  to  its  highest  capability.  Yet 
these  are  not  the  things  that  bring  us  nearer  God. 

Blessed  are  the  pure  in  heart,  for  they  shall  see  God.” 

If  we  love  one  another,  God  dwelletli  in  us,  and  His 
love  is  perfected  in  us.” 

You  may  have  strong,  eagle-eyed  Faith  : well  — you 
will  probably  be  enabled  to  do  great  things  in  life,  to 
work  wonders,  to  trample  on  impossibilities.  You  may 
have  sanguine  Hope:  well  — your  life  will  pass  brightly, 
not  gloomily.  But  tlie  vision  of  God  as  He  is,  to  see 
the  King  in  His  beauty,  is  vouchsafed  not  to  science, 
nor  to  talent,  but  only  to  Purity  and  Love. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


183 


LECTURE  XXV. 

May  2,  1852. 

1 Corinthians,  xiv,  1.  — “ Follow  after  charity,  and  desire  spiritual 
gifts,  but  rather  that  ye  may  prophesy.” 

The  first  verse  of  this  chapter  contains  a remmk  of 
all  that  has  been  said  in  the  thirteenth  and  fourteenth 
chapters,  and  serves  as  a point  from  whence  the  four- 
teenth chapter  begins.  And  we  observe  that  charity 
holds  the  first  place,  and  then  spiritual  gifts  follow  in 
the  second.  And  of  spiritual  gifts,  some  for  certain 
reasons,  as  for  instance,  prophecy,  are  preferable  to 
others.  And  this  is  exactly  the  subject  of  these  three 
last  chapters.  He  says,  graces,  like  charity,  are  superior 
to  gifts:  ‘‘Follow  after  charity,  and  desire  spiritual 
gifts,  but  rather  that  ye  may  prophesy.’’  We  will  con- 
sider why  is  prophecy  preferable  ? 

It  will  be  necessary,  in  order  to  explain  this,  to  define 
what  we  mean,  and  to  show  the  difference  between  a 
grace  and  a gift.  A grace  does  not  differ  from  a gift  in 
this,  that  the  former  is  from  God,  and  the  latter  from 
nature  : as  a creative  power,  there  is  no  such  thing  as 
nature : all  is  God’s.  A grace  is  that  which  has  in  it 
some  moral  quality  ; whereas  a gift  does  not  necessarily 
share  in  this.  Charity  implies  a certain  character  ; but 
a gift,  as  for  instance  that  of  tongues,  does  not.  A man 
may  be  fluent,  learned,  skilful,  and  be  a good  man  like- 
wise ; another  may  have  the  same  powers,  and  yet  be 
a bad  man  — proud,  mean,  or  obstinate.  Now  this  dis- 
tinction explains  at  once  why  graces  are  preferable. 

Graces  are  what  the  man  i%  ; but  enumerate  his  gifts, 
and  you  will  only  know  what  he  hm.  He  u loving : 
he  hm  eloquence,  or  medical  skill,  or  legal  knowledge, 


184 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


or  tlie  2;ift  of  acquiring  languages,  or  that  of  liealing. 
You  only  have  to  cut  out  his  tongue,  or  to  impair  his 
memory,  and  the  gift  is  gone.  But  on  the  contrary, 
you  must  destroy  his  very  being,  change  him  into 
another  man,  and  obliterate  his  identity,  before  he 
ceases  to  be  a loving  man.  Therefore  you  may  con- 
template the  gift  separate  from  the  man  ; and  whilst  you 
admire  it,  you  may  despise  him  : as  many  a gifted  man 
is  contemptible  through  being  a slave  to  low  vices  or  to 
his  own  high  gifts.  But  you  cannot  contcmj)late  the 
grace  separate  from  the  man : is  loveable  or  admira- 

ble, according  as  he  has  charity ^ faith,  or  self-control. 

And,  hence,  the  Apostle  bids  the  Corinthians  under- 
value gifts  in  comparison  with  graces.  Follow  after 
charity.”  But  as  to  gifts,  they  are  not  ourselves,  but 
our  accidents,  like  property,  ancestors,  birth,  or  position 
in  the  world. 

But  hence  also,  on  the  other  hand,  arises  the  reason 
for  our  due  admiration  of  mfts : desire  spiritual 

gifts.” 

IMany  religious  persons  go  into  the  contrary  extreme  : 
they  call  gifts  dangerous,  ignore  them,  sneer  at  them, 
and  say  they  are  of  the  world.”  No,  says  the  Apos- 
tle, desire”  them:  look  them  in  the  face,  as  goods: 
not  the  highest  goods,  but  still  desirable,  like  wealth  or 
health.  Only  remember,  you  are  not  worthy  or  good 
because  of  them.  And  remember  other  people  are  not 
bound  to  honor  you  for  them.  Admire  a Napoleon’s 
genius  : do  not  despise  it  : but  do  not  let  your  admira- 
tion of  that  induce  you  to  give  honor  to  the  man.  Let 
there  be  no  mere  hero-worship”  — that  false  modern 
spirit  which  recognizes  the  ‘Torce  that  is  in  a man”  as 
tlie  only  thing  worthy  of  homage.  The  subject  of  this 
fourteenth  chapter  is  — not  the  principle  on  which 
graces  are  preferable  to  gifts,  but  the  principle  on  which 
one  gift  is  preferable  to  another.  Rather  that  ye-inay 
j)roph(^sy.”  Now  the  principle  of  this  preference  is 
v(‘i*y  bi'ii'fly  stated.  Of  gifts,  St.  Paul  prefers  those 
which  are  us(‘(id  to  those  that  are  showy.  The  gift  of 
pro]>hecy  was  useful  to  others,  whilst  that  of  tongues 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


185 


was  only  a luxury  for  self.  Now  the  principle  of  this 
preference  is  stated  generally  in  the  twelfth  verse  ; 

Even  so  ye,  forasmuch  as  ye  are  zealous  of  spiritual 
gifts,  seek  that  ye  may  excel  to  the  edifying  of  the 
Church.’’ 

We  come,  therefore,  to-day,  to  the  exposition  of  a 
chapter  confessedly  of  extreme  difficulty,  a chapter  on 
Prophecy  and  the  gift  of  Tongues.  It  was  from  a 
strange  and  wild  misinterpretation  of  this  chapter,  un- 
tenable on  any  sound  grounds  of  interpretation,  that  the 
great  and  gifted  Irving  fell  into  such  fatal  error. 

For  some  reasons  it  might  be  well  to  omit  this  chap- 
ter altogether ; in  simple  modesty  for  one,  since  I can- 
not but  feel  diffident  of  entering  upon  ground  where 
so  many  have  slipped  and  fallen.  But  this  would  be 
contrary  to  the  principle  I have  laid  down,  of  endeavor- 
ing with  straightforwardness  and  simplicity  to  expound 
the  whole  counsel  of  God. 

I must  ask  you  to  bear  with  me  while  endeavoring  to 
expound  this  extremely  difficult  question.  There  is  no 
minister  of  the  Church  of  England  who  can  pretend  to 
a power  of  infallible  interpretation.  I give  you  the  re- 
sult of  patient  study  and  much  thought.  Let  those  who 
are  tempted  to  despise  flippantly,  first  qualify  them- 
selves for  an  opinion  by  similar  prayerful  study. 

To-day  we  shall  exclusively  direct  our  attention  to 
acquiring  a clear  view  of  what  the  prophecy  was  which 
the  Apostle  preferred  to  Tongues,  as  this  will  of  course 
be  necessary,  before  we  can  proceed  to  apply  his  prin- 
ciple of  preference  to  our  own  day. 

I.  What  was  prophecy  ? 

In  these  days,  when  we  use  the  word  prophet,  we 
mean  it  almost  always  to  signify  a predictor  of  future 
events.  But  in  the  Old  Testament  it  has  this  meaning 
only  sometimes^  whilst  in  the  New  Testament  generally 
it  has  not  this  interpretation.  A prophet  was  one  com- 
missioned to  declare  the  will  of  God  — a revealer  of 
truth  ; it  might  be  of  facts  future,  or  the  far  higher 
truth  of  the  meaning  of  facts  present. 


18f3 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Hence,  in  tlio  third  verse,  He  that  projdiesieth, 
speaketh  unto  men  to  edification,  and  exliortation,  and 
comfort.”  Here,  then,  is  the  essence  of  the  prophet’s 
office,  but  there  is  not  one  woi’d  spoken  here  of  predic- 
tion. We  can  imagine  that  it  might  have  lieen  neces- 
sary, in  order  fully  to  expound  a spiritual  principle,  or 
a principle  of  divine  politics,  to  foretell  the  result  of 
transgression  against  it ; as  when  the  captivity,  or  the 
fate  of  Babylon  and  Nineveh  was  predicted  ; but  this 
was  not  the  essence  of  the  prophet’s  duty : the  essence 
of  his  duty  was  to  reveal  truth. 

Again,  in  the  twenty-fourth  verse,  the  exercise  of 
this  gift  is  spoken  of  as  one  specially  instrumental  in  the 
conversion  of  unbelievers.  If  all  prophesy,  and  there 
come  in  one  that  believeth  not,  or  one  unlearned,  he  is 
convinced  of  all,  he  is  judged  of  all.”  Observe  here, 
prediction  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter ; for  before 
a prediction  could  be  fulfilled,  the  unbeliever  falls 
down,  acknowledges  God,”  and  reports  that  God  is  in 
you  of  a truth.”  Moreover,  the  prophecy  was  some- 
thing which  touched  his  conscience,  read  his  very  soul, 
interpreted  the  secrets  of  his  heart:  ^‘he  is  convinced 
of  all.” 

And  this  surely  makes  the  question  sufficiently  plain 
for  all  practical  purposes.  Prophecy  was  a gift  emi- 
nently useful : it  was  the  power  of  expounding  the  Will 
and  the  Word  of  God.  And  for  us  to  embrace  the 
essence  of  the  matter,  it  does  not  signify  whether  it  is, 
as  it  was  then,  a gift  miraculous,  or,  as  it  is  now,  a gift 
slowly  improved.  The  deep  insight  into  truth,  the 
happy  faculty  of  imparting  truth  ; these  two  endow- 
ments together  made  up  that  which  was  essential  to  the 
prophet  of  the  early  Church. 

IT.  We  pass  on  now  to  a subject  much  more  difficult : 
what  is  meant  by  the  gift  of  tongues. 

From  the  account  given  in  tlie  second  chapter  of 
Acts,  in  which  Partliians,  Medes,  the  dwellers  in 
M(*soj)otamia,”  and  various  others,  said  of  those  who 
liad  the  gilt  of  tongues  that  they  spoke  so  that  the  mul- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


187 


titude  lieard,  every  man  in  liis  own  tongue  wherein 
he  was  born,  tlie  wonderful  works  of  God ; ” it  is  gen- 
erally taken  for  granted  that  it  was  a miraculous  gift  of 
speaking  foreign  languages,  and  that  the  object  of  such 
a gift  was  the  conversion  of  the  heathen  world.  After 
a long  and  patient  examination  of  the  subject,  I humbly 
doubt  this  altogether,  and  I do  not  think  that  it  seems 
tenable  for  ten  minutes  of  fair  discussion.  I believe 
that  the  gift  was  a far  higher  one  than  that  of  the 
linguist. 

And  first,  for  this  reason  amongst  others,  that  St. 
Paul  prefers  prophecy  to  the  gift  of  “ tongues  ” because 
of  its  being  more  useful,  since  prophecy  edified  others, 
and  tongues  did  not.  Now  could  he  have  said  this, 
had  the  gift  been  the  power  of  speaking  foreign  lan- 
guages ? Was  there  no  tendency  to  edification  — 
no  profitableness  in  a gift  which  would  have  so  mar- 
vellously facilitated  preaching  to  the  nations  of  the 
world  ? We  will  proceed  to  collect  the  hints  given  of 
the  effects  of  the  gift,  and  of  the  gift  itself,  which  are 
to  be  found  in  this  chapter.  We  gather,  first,  that  the 

tongues  ” were  inarticulate  or  incoherent : in  the 
second  verse  it  is  said,  No  man  understandeth  him.” 
And  lest  you  should  say  this  is  just  what  would  be  true 
of  foreign  languages,  observe  that  the  tongues  spoken 
of  were  rather  of  the  nature  of  an  impassioned  utter- 
ance of  devotional  feeling,  than  of  preaching  intended 
to  be  understood.  The  man  spoke  with  tongues  — 

not  unto  men,  but  unto  God.’’  And  what  is  this  but 
that  rapt,  ecstatic  outpouring  of  unutterable  feeling, 
for  which  language  is  insufficient  and  poor,  in  which  a 
man  is  not  trying  to  make  himself  logically  clear  to 
men,  but  pouring  out  his  soul  to  God  ? 

Again  in  the  fourth  verse  : “ He  that  speaketh  in 
an  unknown  tongue  edifieth  himself.”  Here  we  find 
another  characteristic  point  given  : this  gift  was  some- 
thing internal,  a kind  of  inspired  and  impassionate 
soliloquy,  or  it  may  be  meditation  uttered  aloud.  There 
was  an  unconscious  need  of  expressing  audibly  the  feel- 
ings arising  within  ; but  when  so  uttered,  they  merely 


188 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ended,  as  the  Apostle  snys,  in  ‘‘  edifying  ” the  person 
wlio  uttered  them.  May  I,  without  profaneness,  com- 
pare these  utterances,  by  way  of  illustration,  to  the 
broken  murmur  with  which  a poet  full  of  deep  thought 
might  be  supposed,  in  solitude,  or  in  unconsciousness  of 
the  presence  of  others,  to  put  his  feelings  into  inco- 
herent muttered  words  ? What  would  this  be  but  an 
exercise  of  feeling  irrepressible,  bursting  into  utterance 
for  relief,  and  so  edifying  itself! 

Once  again ; in  the  seventh  and  eighth  verses  : 
‘‘  And  even  things  without  life,  giving  sound,  whether 
pipe  or  harp,  except  they  give  a distinction  in  the 
sounds,  how  shall  it  be  known  what  is  piped  or 
harped  ? For  if  the  trumpet  give  an  uncertain  sound, 
who  shall  prepare  himself  to  the  battle  ? — whei’e 

the  Apostle  proceeds  to  compare  the  gift  of  tongues  ” 
with  the  unworded  and  inarticulate  sounds  of  musical 
instruments.  These  have  a meanino*.  St.  Paul  does 
not  say  they  have  none,  but  he  says  that  not  being 
definite,  they  are  unintelligible  except  to  a person  in 
sympathy  with  the  same  mood  of  feeling  as  that  of 
him  who  plays  the  pipe  or  trumpet.  And  although 
they  have  a meaning,  it  is  one  which  is  felt  rather  than 
measured  by  the  intellect.  To  the  mere  understanding 
musical  sounds  signify  nothing.  The  mathematician 
would  ask,  What  does  that  prove  ? ” the  historian 
would  say,  Tell  us  what  information  or  fact  does  it 
communicate.”  So  also  we  see  that  one  speaking  with 

tongues  ” would  leave  on  most  people  a vague,  in- 
definite impression,  as  of  a wild,  rude  melody  — the 
utterance  of  feelings  felt  to  be  infinite,  and  incapable 
of  being  put  into  words. 

Have  you  ever  heard  the  low  moanings  of  hopeless- 
ness ? or  those  airs  which  to  us  are  harsh  and  mi- 
me 1 odious,  but  which  to  the  Swiss  mountaineer  tell  of 
home,  l)ringing  him  back  to  the  scenes  of  his  child- 
hood  ; sjieaking  to  him  in  a language  clearer  than  the 
tongue  ? or  have  you  ever  listened  to  the  merry,  un- 
nKjaiiing  shouts  o(*  boyhood,  getting  rid  of  exuberance 
oi’  lii’e,  uttcTiiig  in  sound  a joy  which  boyhood  oidy 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


189 


knows,  and  for  whicli  manhood  has  no  words?  Well, 
in  all  these  you  have  dim  illustrations  of  the  way  in 
which  new  feelings,  deep  feelings,  irrepressible  feelings, 
found  for  themselves  utterance,  in  sounds  which  were 
called  Tongues.” 

Again,  they  are  spoken  of  in  another  way  in  the 
twenty-third  verse  : If,  therefore,  the  whole  Church 
be  come  together  into  one  place,  and  all  speak  with 
tongues,  and  others  come  in  there  that  are  unlearned 
and  unbelievers,  they  will  not  say  that  ye  are  mad  ? ” 
Thus  the  sound  of  these  utterances  of  strong  feeling 
when  unrepressed,  and  weakly  allowed  full  vent,  was 
like  the  ravings  of  insanity.  So  indeed  men  did  im- 
agine on  the  day  of  Pentecost : Others  mocking,  said. 
These  men  are  full  of  new  wine.”  Remember  it  was 
a great  part  of  the  Apostle’s  object  in  this  chapter  to 
remind  the  Corinthians  that  they  were  bound  to  control 
this  power  ; else  it  would  degenerate  into  mere  im- 
becility, or  Fanaticism.  Feeling  is  a precious  gift;  but 
when  men  parade  it,  exhibit  it,  and  give  way  to  it,  it 
is  weakness  instead  of  strength. 

Lastly,  let  us  consider  the  eleventh  verse.  There- 
fore, if  I know  not  the  meaning  of  the  voice,  I shall  be 
unto  him  that  speaketh  a barbarian,  and  he  that  speak- 
eth  shall  be  a barbarian  unto  me.”  Here  the  gift  is 
compared  to  a barbarian  tongue,  to  a man  speaking 
what  the  hearer  knew  not.  Therefqi’e  we  see  that  it  is 
not  a barbarian  tongue  itself  which  is  here  intended, 
but  merely  that  the  indefinable  language  uttered  is 
likened  to  one. 

Here,  however,  we  arrive  at  a most  important  pecu- 
liarity in  this  gift.  From  the  thirteenth  verse  we  learn 
that  it  could  be  interpreted.  And  without  this  inter- 
pretation the  tongues  ” were  obviously  useless.  The 
gift  might  be  a personal  indulgence  and  luxury,  but  to 
the  world  it  was  valueless  : as  in  the  fourteenth  verse, 

My  spirit  prayeth,  but  my  understanding  remaineth 
unfruitful.”  Now,  if  it  had  been  a foreign  language, 
it  would  have  been  simply  necessary  that  the  inter- 
preter should  be  a native  of  the  country  where  the 


190 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


language  was  spoken.  But  here  the  power  of  inter- 
pretation is  reckoned  a spiritual  gift  from  God  as  mucli 
as  the  power  of  tongues  : a gift  granted  in  answer 
to  prayer.  Wherefore  let  liiin  tliat  speaketh  in  an 
unknown  tongue  pray  that  he  may  interpret.” 

Now  this  we  shall  best  understand  by  analogies.  It 
is  a great  principle  that  all  the  deeper  feelings  can  only 
be  comprehended  by  one  who  is  in  the  same  state  of 
feeling  as  the  person  who  utters,  or  attempts  to  utter 
them.  Sympathy  is  the  only  condition  for  inter- 
pretation of  feeling.  Take  the  Apostle’s  own  illustra- 
tion : he  compares  the  gift  of  tongues  to  music.  Now 
music  needs  an  interpreter,  and  the  interpretation  must 
be  given,  not  in  words,  but  in  corresponding  feelings. 
There  must  be  music  in  the  soul  ” as  the  condition 
of  understanding  harmony  : to  him  who  has  not  this, 
the  language  of  music  is  simply  unintelligible.  None 
but  one  of  kindred  spirit  with  the  sweet  singer  of  Is- 
rael could  interpret  the  melodies  of  David  : others  who 
felt  not  with  him,  said,  aS.  of  the  prophet  of  old,  Doth 
he  not  speak  parables  ? ” 

Take  another  instance  where  the  feelings  need  inter- 
pretation. A child  is  often  the  subject  of  feelings  which 
he  does  not  understand  : observe  how  he  is  affected  by 
the  reading  of  a tale  or  a moving  hymn  : he  will  not 
say.  How  touching,  how  well  imagined ! but  he  will 
hide  his  face,  or  h^  hums,  or  laughs,  or  becomes  peevish 
because  he  does  not  know  what  is  the  matter  with  him. 
He  is  ashamed  of  sensations  which  he  does  not  under- 
stand. He  has  no  words  like  a man  to  express  his  new 
feelings.  One  not  understanding  him  would  say  it  was 
caprice  and  ill-behavior.  But  the  grown  man  can  in- 
t(irpret  them;  and,  sympathizing  with  the  child,  he  says, 
ddie  child  cannot  contain  his  feelings.” 

Or  take  the  instance  of  a physician  finding  words  for 
])hysical  feelings,  because  he  understands  them  better 
tlian  the  ])atientwho  is  unable  to  ex])ress  them.  In  the 
same  way  the  early  Christians,  being  the  subjects  of 
new,  deep,  and  s])iritual  feeling,  declared  their  joy,  their 
aspiration,  their  ecstatic  devotion,  in  inarticulate  utter- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


191 


ances.  They  felt  truths,  which  were  just  as  true  and 
deep  to  them  as  when  articulately  expressed.  But  the 
drawing  out  of  these  emotions  into  words,  the  explain- 
ing what  they  felt,  and  what  their  hurried,  huddled 
words  unconsciously  meant,  that  was  the  office  of  the 
interpreter.  For  example,  a stranger  might  have  been 
at  a loss  to  know  what  was  really  meant.  ‘‘  Are  you 
happy  or  miserable,  O Christian,  by  those  wild  utter- 
ances ? Is  it  madness,  or  new  wine,  or  inspiration  ? ” 
And  none  but  a person  in  the  same  mood  of  mind,  or 
one  who  had  passed  through  that  mood  and  understood 
it  by  the  unerring  tact  of  sympathy,  could  say  to  the 
stranger,  “ This  is  the  overflow  of  gratefulness  : he  is 
blessing  in  the  Spirit : it  is  a hymn  of  joy  that  his  heart 
is  singing  to  itself;  ” or,  “ It  is  a burst  of  prayer.” 
And  therefore  St.  Paul  writes  the  fifteenth,  sixteenth, 
and  seventeenth  verses,  which  contain  the  very  points 
I have  mentioned,  praying,”  singing,”  blessing,” 
and  giving  of  thanks.”  It  seems  to  me  that  the  early 
Christians  were  the  subjects  of  feelings  too  deep  to  be 
put  into  words. 


102 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XXVI. 

May  9,  1851. 

1 Corinthians  xiv.  2-40.  — “ For  he  that  speaketh  in  an  unknown 
tongue  speaketh  not  unto  men,  but  unto  Godj  for  no  man  under- 
standeth  him;  howbeit  in  the  spirit  he  speaketh  mysteries.  — But  he 
that  prophesieth  speaketh  unto  men  to  edification,  and  exhortation, 
and  comfort.  — He  that  speaketh  in  an  unknown  tongue  edifieth 
himself;  but  he  that  prophesieth  edifieth  the  church.  — I would  that 
ye  all  spake  with  tongues,  but  rather  that  ye  prophesied:  for  greater 
is  he  that  prophesieth  than  he  that  speaketh  with  tongues,  except 
he  interpret,  that  the  church  may  receive  edifying.  — Now,  breth- 
ren, if  I come  unto  you  speaking  with  tongues,  what  shall  I profit 
you,  except  I shall  speak  to  you  either  by  revelation,  or  by  knowl- 
edge, or  by  prophesying,  or  by  doctrine?  — And  even  things  with- 
out life  giving  sound,  whether  pipe  or  harp,  except  they  give  a 
distinction  in  the  sounds,  how  shall  it  be  known  what  is  piped  or 
harped?  — For  if  the  trumpet  give  an  uncertain  sound,  who  shall 
prepare  himself  to  the  battle  ? — So  likewise  ye,  except  ye  utter  by 
the  tongue  words  easy  to  be  understood,  how  shall  it  be  known 
what  is  spoken  ? for  ye  shall  speak  into  the  air.  — There  are,  it  may 
be,  so  many  kinds  of  voices  in  the  world,  and  none  of  them  is  with- 
out signification.  — Therefore  if  I know  not  the  meaning  of  the 
voice,  I shall  be  unto  him  that  speaketh  a barbarian,  and  he  that 
speaketh  shall  be  a barbarian  unto  me.  — Even  so  ye,  forasmuch 
as  ye  are  zealous  of  spiritual  gifts,  seek  that  ye  may  excel  to  the 
edifying  of  the  church.  — Wherefore  let  him  that  speaketh  in  an 
unknown  tongue  pray  that  he  may  interpret.  — For  if  I pray  in  an 
unknown  tongue,  my  spirit  prayeth  but  my  understanding  is  un- 
fruitful. — What  is  it  then  ? — I v/ill  pray  with  the  spirit,  and  I 
will  pray  with  the  understanding  also:  I will  sing  with  the  spirit, 
and  I will  sing  with  the  understanding  also.  — Else  when  thou 
shalt  bless  with  the  spirit,  how  shall  he  that  occupieth  the  room  of 
the  unlearned  say  Amen  at  thy  giving  of  thanks,  seeing  he  under- 
standeth  not  what  thou  sayest  ? — For  thou  verily  givest  thanks 
well,  but  the  other  is  not  edified.  — I thank  my  God,  I speak  with 
tongues  more  tlian  ye  all:  — Yet  in  the  church  I had  rather  speak 
five  words  witli  my  understanding,  that  by  my  voice  I might  teach 
otliers  also,  than  ten  tliousand  words  in  an  unknown  tongue.  — 
Jiretliren,  })o  not  children  in  understanding:  howbeit  in  malice  be  ye 
children,  but  in  understanding  be  men.  — In  the  law  it  is  written. 
With  men  of  other  tongues  and  other  lips  will  I speak  unto  this  peo- 
])1(^;  and  yet  for  all  that  will  they  not  hear  me,  saith  the  Lord.  — 
Wherefore  tongues  are  for  a sign,  not  to  them  that  believe,  but  to 
them  tliat  l)elicve  not : but  propliesying  serveth  not  for  them  that 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


193 


believe  not,  but  for  them  which  believe.  If  therefore  the  whole 
church  be  come  together  into  one  place,  and  all  speak  with  tongues, 
and  there  come  in  those  that  are  unlearned,  or  unbelievers,  will  they 
not  say  that  ye  are  mad  ? — But  if  all  prophesy,  and  there  come  in 
one  that  believeth  not,,  or  one  unlearned,  he  is  convinced  of  all,  he 
is  judged  of  all:  — And  thus  are  the  secrets  of  Iiis  heart  made  mani- 
fest; and  so  falling  down  on  his  face  he  will  worship  God,  and  re- 
port that  God  is  in  you  of  a truth.  — How  is  it  then,  brethren?  when 
ye  come  together,  every  one  of  you  hath  a psalm,  hath  a doctrine, 
hath  a tongue,  hath  a revelation,  hath  an  interpretation.  Let  all 
things  be  done  unto  edifying. — If  any  man  speak  in  an  unknown 
tongue,  let  it  be  by  two,  or  at  the  most  by  three,  and  that  by  course; 
and  let  one  interpret.  — But  if  there  be  no  interpreter,  let  him  keep 
silence  in  the  church;  and  let  him  speak  to  himself,  and  to  God. 

— Let  the  prophets  speak  two  or  three,  and  let  the  other  judge.  — 
If  anything  be  revealed  to  another  that  sitteth  by,  let  the  first  hol'd 
his  peace.  — For  ye  may  all  prophesy  one  by  one,  that  all  may  learn, 
and  all  may  be  comforted.  — And  the  spirits  of  the  prophets  are  sub- 
ject to  the  prophets.  — For  God  is  not  the  author  of  confusion,  but 
of  peace,  as  in  all. churches  of  the  saints.  — Let  your  women  keep 
silence  in  the  churches:  for  it  is  not  permitted  unto  them  to  speak; 
but  they  are  commanded  to  be  under  obedience,  as  also  saith  the 
law.  — And  if  they  will  learn  anything,  let  them  ask  their  hus- 
bands at  home:  for  it  is  a shame  for  women  to  speak  in  the  church. 

— What  ? came  the  word  of  God  out  from  you  ? or  came  it  unto 
you  only  ? — If  any  man  think  himself  to  be  a prophet,  or  spir- 
itual, let  him  acknowledge  that  the  things  that  I write  unto  you  are 
the  commandments.of  the  Lord.  — But  if  any  man  be  ignorant,  let 
him  be  ignorant.  — Wherefore,  brethren,  covet  to  prophesy,  and 
forbid  not  to  speak  with  tongues.  — Let  all  things  be  done  decently 
and  in  order.” 


We  were  occupied  last  Sunday  in  endeavoring  to 
ascertain  merely  what  the  gifts  of  prophecy  and  tongues 
were. 

Prophecy  we  found  to  be  in  its  essence  the  faculty  of 
comforting,  exhorting,  &c.,  by  spiritual  truths  addressed 
to  the  understanding.  The  prophet  had  the  gift  of  in- 
sight, and  also  the  power  of  explaining  the  meaning  of 
truth.  Collecting  the  information  scattered  through 
the  chapter  respecting  Tongues,’’  we  found  that  while 
under  their  influence  men  spoke  incoherently  and  unin- 
telligibly, — ver.  2 ; in  a soliloquy  edifying  self,  — ver. 
4 ; they  are  compared  with  the  sound  of  inarticulate 
musical  instruments, — ver.  7 ; to  barbarian  tongues, — 
ver.  11  ; to  ravings  of  insanity,  — ver.  23  ; as  capable  of 
interpretation  by  persons  spiritually  gifted,  in  spite  of 
their  incoherenev  and  inarticulateness,  — ver.  13. 

17 


194 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Putting  all  tills  together,  we  concluded  that  new  in- 
tense feelings  from  the  Holy  Spirit  were  uttered  inco- 
herently, not  in  some  foreign  language,  but  in  each 
man’s  own  language,  in  broken  sentences,  whicli  were 
unintelligible  to  all,  except  to  those  who,  by  sympathy 
and  a corresponding  spiritual  state,  were  able  to  inter- 
pret, and  say  whether  they  expressed  unutterable  joy  or 
blessing,  or  giving  thanks,  or  devotion. 

In  like  manner  we  saw  that  the  sound  of  the  Alpine 
horn,  the  awkward  attempts  of  a child,  when  affected 
by  a moving  anecdote,  to  conceal  his  feelings,  boyish 
joy  intoxicated  with  happiness,  thougli  they  may  appear 
to  be  meaningless,  yet  have  deep  significance  for  those 
who  are  in  sympathy  with  them.  Or  again,  thanks 
uttered  by  any  one  overpowered  by  feeling  — how  in- 
coherent ! yet  how  much  better  than  wordy,  fluent 
sententiousness  ! Abraham’s  laugh,  for  example  — it 
was  a strange  tongue  in  which  to  express  happiness : 
who  could  fairly  interpret  that,  and  say  it  was  intense 
joy  ? It  was  not  irreverence  or  unbelief  in  David 
dancino;  before  the  Ark.  What  was  it  but  the  human 
utterance  of  Divine  joy?  Consider,  again,  Elisha’s 
silent  sorrow.  Knowest  thou,”  said  the  sons  of  the 
prophets,  unable  to  interpret  the  apparent  apathy  of  his 
silence,  that  the  Lord  will  take  away  the  light  of 
Israel?”  Observe  how  a sympathetic  spirit  was 
needed  : silence  had  been  better  in  them.  Yea,  I 
know  it ; hold  ye  your  peace.”  His  silence  had  a 
lano;uao:e  of  its  own  ; it  was  a tongue  of  o;rief,  which 
needed  interpretation  from  the  heart. 

We  will  now  consider  the  nature  of  spiritual  gifts, 
and  also  some  directions  for  their  use. 

The  New  Testament  speaks  much  of  spiritual  gifts. 
Thus  St.  Paul  says,  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Romans,  I 
long  to  see  you,  that  I may  impart  unto  you  some 
sj)iritual  gift,  to  the  end  ye  may  be  established.”  Let 
us  distinctly  understand  wliat  a s])iritual  gift”  is.  It 
means  tlie  faculty  in  each  man  in  wliicli  the  Holy  Spirit 
revea  Is  ii  i nisei  f.  lAeiy  man  has  some  such,  in  which 
liis  cliief  force  lic^s:  this  is  a gift.  Well,  this,  either 


TO  THE  COm^'TIIIAXS. 


195 


then  exhibited  for  the  first  time  in  a visible,  perceptible 
effect,  or  some  old  power  sanctified  and  elevated,  was 
called  a spiritual  gift.  For  it  did  not  matter  that  it  was 
a natural  gift  or  power ; provided  only  that  the  spiritual 
life  in  the  man  raised  it  and  ennobled  it,  it  then  became 
a spiritual  gift. 

There  are  certain  epochs  in  the  world’s  history 
which  may  be  called  creative  epochs,  when  intense 
feelings  elevate  all  the  powers  preternaturally.  Such, 
for  example,  was  the  close  of  the  last  century,  when 
the  revolutionary  spirit  of  the  age  manifested  itself  in 
the  creation  of  almost  preternatural  abundance  of  mil- 
itary talent. 

The  first  age  of  Christianity  was  emphatically  such 
an  epoch.  The  Holy  Spirit  was  poured  out  largely, 
and  under  Its  influence  mind  and  body  were  trans- 
figured— whatever  It  touched.  It  vivified:  as  when  a 
person  was  healed,  and  ‘‘his  ankle-bones  received 
strength.  ’ Thus  we  learn  that  the  Holy  Ghost  may 
mingle  with  man  in  three  ways  — with  his  body,  and 
then  you  have  what  is  called  a miracle  ; with  his  spirit, 
and  then  you  have  that  exalted  feeling  which  finds  vent 
in  what  is  called  Tongues  ; ” or  with  his  intellect,  and 
then  you  have  prophecy.  In  the  case  of  tongues,  men 
felt^  and  could  not  logically  express  feeling,  as  groan- 
ings  which  cannot  be  uttered,”  or  especial  illumination 
of  the  uneducated. 

In  the  case  of  prophecy,  cultivated  minds  were  them- 
selves able  to  develop  in  consecutive  words,  by  the 
understanding  to  the  understanding,  what  the  Spirit 
meant.  But  the  essential  in  all  this  was  the  Divine 
element  of  Life.  The  gift  was  not  independent  of  life  : 
just  as  when  a flood  of  rain  falls  on  dry  and  thirsty 
ground,  and  the  result  is  greenness  and  vigor  in  the 
plants — greenness  and  vigor  not  being  gifts,  but  simply 
the  outward  manifestation  of  invisible  life  — so  the  new 
life  penetrated  the  whole  man,  and  gave  force  to  every 
faculty. 

Consider  what  this  gift  of  prophecy  must  have  done 
in  developing  the  Christian  Church  ! Men  came  into 


196 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Christian  assemblies  for  once,  and  were  astonished  by 
the  flood  of  luminous  and  irresistible  trutli  which  passed 
from  the  prophetic  lips : it  became  an  instrument  of 
conversion  : but  in  the  Tongues  ” the  clear  under- 
standing vanished  into  ecstasy : the  utterer,  unless  he 
controlled  them,  was  carried  away  by  his  feelings. 

For  this  was  not  an  address,  nor  an  exhortation,  nor 
exactly  a prayer  : utterly  indifferent  to  the  presence  of 
others,  the  man  was  occupied  only  with  God  and  his 
own  soul.  Consider  St.  Paul’s  ecstasy  when  lie  was 
caught  up  into  the  third  heaven  ; yet  even  this  he 
deprecates  as  comparatively  worthless.  That  state,  if 
not  under  control,  would  have  produced  tongues.” 
Hence  tongues  ” is  the  ])lural,  for  there  were  different 
kinds  of  utterance  by  different  feelings,  innumerable 
phases  of  feeling,  innumerable  modes  of  utterance. 

In  the  twenty-ninth  verse,  St.  Paul  gives  a direction 
concerning  prophecy,  from  which  we  learn  that  private 
inspiration  was  always  to  be  judged  by  the  general 
inspiration  — i,  ^.,  it  was  not  to  be  taken  for  granted 
because  spoken  : <r—  had  this  simple  rule  been  attended 
to,  how  much  fanaticism  would  have  been  prevented ! 
We  must  remember  that  inspiration  is  one  thing,  infal- 
libility is  another.  God  the  Holy  Ghost,,  as  a Sanctify- 
ing Spirit,  dwells  in  human  beings  with  partial  sin ; is 
it  inconceivable  that  God,  the  Inspiring  Spirit,  should 
dwell  with  partial  error  ? Did  he  not  do  so,  He  could 
not  dwell  with  man  at  all.  Therefore,  St.  Paul  says 
that  the  spirits  of  the  prophets  are  to  be  subject  to  the 
prophets.  Neglect  of  this  has  been  a fruitful  cause  of 
fanaticism.  From  the  thirty-second  verse,  we  learn  the 
responsibility  attaching  to  every  possessor  of  gifts  ; it  is 
a duty  to  rule  — that  is,  to  control  — his  gift.  For  in- 
spiration might  be  abused  : this  is  the  great  lessen  of  the 
passage  ; the  afflatus  was  not  irresistible  : a man  was 
not  to  be  borne  away  by  his  gift,  but  to  be  master  of  it, 
and  resj)onsible  for  it.  The  projdiets  were  not  mere 
trumpets, to  utter  rightly  what  God  said. 

ddie  lirst  direction  res])ecting  ‘^tongues”  was  re- 
pression of  feeling  in  public.  It  is  plain  that  what  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


197 


Apostle  dreaded  was  self-deception  and  enthusiasm. 
This  state  of  ecstasy  was  so  pleasurable,  and  the  ad- 
miration awarded  to  it  so  easy  to  be  procured,  that  it 
became  the  object  of  anxious  pursuit  to  numbers,  who, 
instead  of  steady  well-doing,  spent  life  in  exhibiting 
intense  feeling  or  showing  off.”  Now  this,  in  its 
essence,  is  not  confined  to  Christian  souls.  Enthu- 
siasm ” means  possessed  by  the  god”  — a heathen 
word  used  of  the  Pythonesses  or  frantic  devotees  ; for 
there  is  a bad  as  well  as  a fine  frenzy.  And  the  camp 
meetings  in  America,  and  the  convulsions  of  the  Rant- 
ers, all  bear  testimony  to  the  same  truth  ; how  uncon- 
trolled religious  feeling  may  overpower  reason  and 
sense  — mere  natural  and  animal  feeling  mingling  itself 
with  the  movements  of  Divine  life. 

There  is  o-reat  danofer  in  un^overned  feelins;.  There 
are  persons  more  highly  gifted  with  fine  delicate  sensi- 
bilities than  others : they  are  not  moved  to  action  like 
others,  by  convictions  of  the  intellect  or  by  a strong 
sense  of  duty : they  can  do  nothing,  except  through 
their  affections.  All  this  is  very  precious,  no  doubt,  if 
well  used  : but  just  in  proportion  as  feelings  are  strong 
do  they  require  discipline.  The  temptation  is  great  to 
indulge  from  mere  pleasure  of  indulgence,  and  from 
the  admiration  given  to  feeling.  It  is  easier  to  gain 
credit  for  goodness  by  a glistening  eye,  while  listening 
to  some  story  of  self-sacrifice,  than  by  patient  useful- 
ness. It  is  easier  to  get  credit  for  spirituality  by  thril- 
ling at  some  impassioned  speech  on  the  platform,  or 
sermon  from  the  pulpit,  than  by  living  a life  of  justice, 
mercy,  and  truth.  And  hence,  religious  life  degene- 
rates into  mere  indulgence  of  feeling,  the  excitement  of 
religious  meetings,  or  the  utterance  of  strong  feeling. 
In  this  sickly  strife,  life  wastes  away,  and  the  man  or 
woman  becomes  weak  instead  of  strong ; for  invariably 
utterance  weakens  feeling. 

What  a lesson  ! These  divine  high  feelings,  in  the 
Church  of  Corinth  — to  what  had  they  degenerated ! 
Loud,  tumultuous,  disorderly  cries ; such,  that  a stranger 
17* 


/ 


198 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


coming  in  would  pronounce  of  tlie  speakers  that  they 
were  mad ! 

The  second  direction  respecting  tongues  is,  “ Forhid 
not  to  speak  with  tongues.”  See  the  inspired  wisdom 
of  tlie  Apostle’s  teaching ! A common  man  would 
have  said,  All  this  is  wild  fanaticism  : away  with  it!” 
St.  Paul  said,  It  is  not  all  fanaticism  : part  is  true, 
part  is  error.”  The  true  is  God’s  Spirit,  the  false  is 
the  admixture  of  human  emotion,  vanity,  and  turbid 
excitement.  A similar  wise  distinction  we  find  in  that 
expression,  Be  not  drunk  with  wine,  but  be  ye  filled 
with  the  Spirit.  He  implies  there  are  two  kinds  of 
excitement  — one  pure,  one  impure;  one  proceeding 
from  a higher  state  of  being,  the  other  from  one  lower ; 
which  yet  resemble  each  other  — intoxication  with 
wine  or  with  spiritual  joy  ; and  both  are  capable  of 
abuse.  They  are  alike  in  this,  that  in  both  the  senses 
and  the  conscious  will  may  be  mastered. 

The  lesson,  therefore,  from  this  second  requirement, 
is  to  learn  to  sympathize  with  deep  feeling:  believe 
that  it  has  a meaning,  though  you  may  not  have  ex- 
perienced it.  Sympathy  is  needful  in  order  rightly  to 
understand  the  higher  feelings.  There  are  cold,  intel- 
lectual men,  afraid  of  enthusiasm,  who  frown  on  and 
forbid  every  manifestation  of  feeling : they  will  talk  of 
the  elocution  of  Isaiah,  or  the  logic  of  St.  Paul,  and 
they  think  to  fathom  the  meaning  of  Spiriture  by  gram- 
matical criticism  ; whereas  only  the  Spirit  can  interpret 
the  Spirit.  You  must  get  into  the  same  region  of  feel- 
ing in  which  prophets  breathe,  and  then  only  can  you 
understand  them. 

The  third  Apostolic  direction  is  to  prefer  gifts  which 
are  useful  to  others,  rather  than  those  which  are  bril- 
liant and  draw  admiration  to  ourselves.  And  yet  we 
])ifjue  and  pride  ourselves  on  gifts  which  make  us  unap- 
proachable, and  raise  us  above  the  crowd  of  men  in 
solitary  suiieriority.  For  example;  it  is  a great  thing 
to  be  an  astronomer,  reading  the  laws  of  the  universe  ; 
yet  an  astronomer  might  be  cold,  heartless,  atheistical, 
looking  down  with  prolbund  scoi’n  on  the  vulgar  herd. 


TO  THE  COEIKTHIANS. 


199 


Still,  I suppose  few  would  not  rather  be  the  astronomer 
with  whose  name  Europe  now  rings,  than  an  obscure' 
country  surgeon,  attending  to  and  soothing  the  suffer- 
ings of  peasants  ; there  are  few  who  would  not  rather 
be  the  gifted  singer,  at  whose  strains  breathless  multi- 
tudes melt  into  tears,  than  some  nurse  of  an  hospital 
soothing  pain,  or  a Dorcas  making  garments  for  the 
poor.  Tell  me,  which  would  he  have  preferred,  who, 
gifted  above  all  other  men  with  inspired  wisdom  and 
sublime  feelings,  yet  said,  I thank  my  God,  I speak 
with  tongues  more  than  ye  all  ; yet  in  the  Church  I 
had  rather  speak  five  words  with  my  understanding, 
that  by  my  voice  I might  teach  others  also,  than  ten 
thousand  words  in  an  unknown  tongue  ? ’’ 

It  is  better  to  be  useful  than  brilliant.  You  do  not 
think  so?  Well,  then,  your  heart  does  not  beat  to  the 
same  music  which  regulated  the  pulses  of  the  Apostle 
Paul. 

Lastly,  I infer  the  real  union  of  the  human  race  lies 
• in  oneness  of  heart.  Consider  what  this  gift  was  : it 
was  not  a gift  of  foreign  languages  ; a Corinthian  Greek 
might  be  speaking  in  the  Spirit  in  the  Church’^  and 
another  Greek  might  not  understand  him"';  but  a Roman, 
or  a Mesopotamian,  might  understand  him,  though  he 
spoke  the  Greek  language : and  this  not  by  a gift  of 
language,  but  by  a gift  of  sympathy.  Had  it  been  a 
gift  of  foreign  tongues,  it  would  have  only  perpetuated 
the  Babel  confusion ; but  being  a gift  of  the  Spirit,  it 
neutralized  that  confusion.  The  world  is  craving  for 
unity ; this  is  the  distinct  conscious  longing  of  our  age. 
It  may  be  that  centuries  shall  pass  before  this  unity 
comes.  Still,  it  is  something  to  be  on  the  right  track  ; 
it  is  something  to  know  what  we  are  to  cultivate  in 
order  to  make  it  come,  and  what  we  are  to  avoid. 

Now  some  expect  this  by  uniformity  of  customs,  ec- 
clesiastical rites  and  dress  : let  us,  they  say,  have  the 
same  services,  the  same  hours,  the  same  liturgies,  and 
we  shall  be  one.  Others  expect  it  through  oneness  of 
language.  Philosophers  speculate  on  the  probability 
of  one  language,  perhaps  the  English,  predominating. 


200 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


They  see  the  vast  American  and  Australian  continents 
— the  New  Worlds  — speaking  this,  while  other  lan- 
guages are  only  learnt  as  polite  accomplishments.  Hence 
they  hope  that  a time  is  coming  when  nations  shall  un- 
derstand each  other  perfectly,  and  be  one. 

Christianity  casts  aside  all  these  plans  and  specula- 
tions as  utterly  insufficient.  It  does  not  look  to  political 
economy,  to  ecclesiastical  drill,  nor  to  the  absorption  of 
all  languages  into  one  ; but  it  looks  to  the  eternal  Spirit 
of  God,  which  proceeds  from  the  eternal  Son,  the  Man 
Christ  Jesus.  One  heart,  and  then  many  languages 
will  be  no  barrier.  One  spirit,  and  man  will  under- 
stand man. 

As  an  application,  at  this  time,  we  will  consider  one 
thing  only.  There  are  gifts  which  draw  admiration  to 
a man’s  self,  others  which  solace  and  soothe  him  per- 
sonally, and  a third  class  which  benefit  others.  The 
World  and  the  Bible  are  at  issue  on  the  comparative 
worth  of  these.  A gifted  singer  soon  makes  a fortune, 
and  men  give  their  guinea  and  their  ten  guineas  un- 
grudgingly for  a morning’s  enjoyment.  An  humble 
teacher  in  a school,  or  a missionary,  can  often  but  only 
just  live.  Gifts  that  are  showy,  and  gifts  that  please  — 
before  these  the  world  yields  her  homage,  while  the 
lowly  teachers  of  the  poor  and  the  ignorant  are  for- 
gotten and  unnoticed.  Only  remember  that,  in  the 
sight  of  the  Everlasting  Eye,  the  one  is  creating  sounds 
which  perish  with  the  hour  that  gave  them  birth,  the 
other  is  doino;  a Work  that  is  For  Ever  — buildino;  and 
forminc:  for  the  Eternal  World  an  immortal  human 

o 

spirit. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


201 


LECTURE  XXVII. 

December  7,  1851. 

1 CoRiJ^THi.iNS,  XV.  1-12.  — Moreover,  brethren,  I declare  unto  you 
the  gospel  which  I preached  unto  you,  which  also  ye  have  received, 
and  wherein  ye  stand;  — By  which  also  ye  are  saved,  if  ye  keep  in 
memory  what  I preached  unto  you,  unless  ye  have  believed  in  vain. 
— For  I delivered  unto  you  first  of  all  that  which  I also  received, 
how  that  Christ  died  for  our  sins  according  to  the  scriptures;  — And 
that  he  was  buried,  and  that  he  rose  again  the  third  day  according 
to  the  scriptures  : — And  that  he  was  seen  of  Cephas,  then  of  the 
twelve  : — After  that,  he  was  seen  of  above  five  hundred  brethren 
at  once;  of  whom  the  greater  part  remain  unto  this  present,  but 
some  are  fallen  asleep.  — After  that,  he  was  seen  of  James;  then  of 
all  the  apostles.  — And  last  of  all  he  was  seen  of  me  also,  as  of 
one  born  out  of  due  time.  — For  I am  the  least  of  the  apostles,  that 
am  not  meet  to  be  called  an  apostle,  because  I persecuted  the  Church 
of  God.  — But  by  the  grace  of  God  I am  what  I am  : and  his  grace 
which  was  bestowed  upon  nie  was  not  in  vain ; but  I labored  more 
abundantly  than  they  all  : yet  not  I,  but  the  grace  of  God  which 
was  with  me.  — Therefore  whether  it  were  I or  they,  so  we  preach, 
and  so  ye  believed.  — Now  if  Christ  be  preached  that  he  rose  from 
the  dead,  how  say  some  among  you  that  there  is  no  resurrection  of 
the  dead  ? ’ ’ 


In  the  regular  course  of  our  Sunday  afternoon  Ex- 
positions, we  are  now  arrived  at  the  15th  chapter  of  St. 
Paul’s  First  Epistle  to  the  Corinthians.  We  are  all 
aware  that  this  is  the  chapter  selected  by  our  Church 
to  be  read  at  the  Funeral  Service,  and  to  almost  all  of 
us  every  syllable  stands  associated  in  our  memory  with 
some  sad  and  mournful  moment  in  our  lives  ; when 
every  word,  as  it  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  minister, 
seemed  like  the  knell  of  death  to  our  hearts.  This  is 
one  reason  why  the  exposition  of  this  chapter  is  attend- 
ed with  some  difficulty.  For  we  have  been  so  little 
accustomed  to  look  upon  it  as  consisting  of  Argument 
and  Doctrine,  and  it  has  been,  by  long  and  solemn 
associations,  so  hallowed  in  our  memories,  that  it  sounds 
more  like  stately  music  heard  in  the  stillness  of  night, 
than  like  an  argument ; and  to  separate  it  into  parts, 


202 


LECTUliES  ON  THE  Eri.^XLES 


to  break  it  up  into  fragments,  appears  to  us  to  be  almost 
a profanation,  even  though  it  be  for  the  purpose  of  ex- 
position. 

The  whole  of  this  chapter  is  occupied  with  the  proof 
of  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection.  On  tlie  present 
occasion,  however,  we  confine  ourselves  to  the  first 
twelve  verses.  This  subject,  like  almost  all  the  others, 
treated  of  in  this  Epistle,  had  been  forced  upon  tlie 
Apostle  in  consequence  of  certain  errors  and  heresies 
which  had  crept  into  the  Corinthian  Church.  That 
Church  presented  a singular  S])ectacle  — that  of  a Chris- 
tian body,  large  numbers  of  which  denied  the  doctrine 
of  the  Resurrection,  who,  notwithstanding,  w^ere  still 
reckoned  by  St.  Paul  as  not  having  forfeited  their 
Christianity.  The  first  thing  we  learn  from  this  is,  the 
great  difference  made  by  the  Apostle  between  moral 
wrong-doing  and  intellectual  error.  For  we  have  found 
in  an  earlier  chapter,  when  in  this  same  Church,  the 
crime  of  incest  had  been  committed  by  one  of  its  mem- 
bers, the  Apostle  at  once  commanded  that  they  should 
separate  the  guilty  person  from  their  communion ; but 
here,  although  some  had  fallen  into  error  upon  a doc- 
trine which  was  one  of  the  cardinal  doctrines  of  the 
Church,  the  Apostle  does  not  excommunicate  them, 
nor  does  he  hold  that  they  have  forfeited  their  Christian 
profession.  They  are  wrong,  greatly  wrong,  but  still 
he  expostulates  with  them,  and  endeavors  to  set  them 
right. 

Let  us  examine  this  a little  further.  In  the  present 
day  disbelief  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection  is 
almost  equivalent  to  the  deepest  infidelity.  A man 
wlio  doubts,  or  openly  denies  tlie  doctrine  of  a life  to 
come,  is  a man  we  can  in  no  case  call  a Christian.  But 
there  is  a vast  difference  between  this  doubt  as  ex- 
j>ressed  in  the  time  of  the  A])Ostle,  and  as  in  the  present 
day.  In  the  j)resent  day  this  denial  arises  out  of  ma- 
terialism. ddiat  is,  there  are  men  who  believe  that 
J>ile  and  Soul  and  S])irit  are  merely  the  results  and 
])li(aioniena  of  tlui  juxtaposition  of  certain  particles  of 
matter.  JMac.e  these  partic*les  in  a certain  position, 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


203 


they  say,  and  the  result  will  be  Motion,  or  Electricity 
— call  it  what  you  will ; place  them  in  another  position, 
and  there  will  result  those  phenomena  which  we  call 
Life,  or  those  which  we  call  Spirit ; and  then  separate 
those  particles,  and  all  the  phenomena  will  cease,  and 
this  is  the  condition  which  we  term  Death.  Now  the 
unbelief  of  those  distant  ages  was  something  very  dif- 
ferent from  this.  It  was  not  materialism,  but  an  ultra- 
spiritualism which  led  the  Corinthians  into  error.  They 
denied  the  resurrection  of  the  body,  because  they 
believed  that  the  materials  of  which  that  body  was 
composed  were  the  cause  of  all  evil ; and  they  hailed 
the  Gospel  as  the  brightest  boon  ever  given  to  man, 
chiefly  because  it  gave  them  the  hope  of  being  liberated 
from  the  flesh  with  its  corrupt  desires.  They  looked 
upon  the  resurrection  taught  by  the  Apostle  as  if  it 
were  merely  a figurative  expression.  They  said,  Just 
as  out  of  the  depth  of  winter,  spring  rises  into  glory, 
so,  figuratively  speaking,  you  may  say  there  is  a resur- 
rection of  the  soul  when  it  rises  above  the  flesh  and 
the  carnal  desires  of  nature.  That  is  the  resurrection  ; 
beyond  it  there  is  none.”  On  examining  the  Epistles 
of  St.  Paul,  we  find  many  traces  of  the  prevalence 
of  such  doctrine.  So,  for  instance,  in  one  place  we 
find  the  Apostle  speaking  in  condemnation  of  some 
who  concerning  the  truth  have  erred,  saying  that  the 
resurrection  was  passed  already.”  That  is,  as  we  have 
already  said,  they  thought  that  the  only  resurrection 
was  the  regeneration  of  society.  And  again,  in  the 
beginning  of  his  Second  Epistle  to  this  same  Church 
we  read  : We  that  are  in  this  tabernacle  do  groan, 
being  burdened  ; not  for  that  we  would  be  unclothed, 
but  clothed  upon,  that  mortality  might  be  swallowed 
up  of  life.”  That  is,  in  opposition  to  this  erroneous 
doctrine,  the  Apostle  taught  that  that  which  the  Chris- 
tian doctrine  desires  is  not  merely  to  be  separated  from 
the  body,  or,  in  their  language,  to  be  unclothed,”  but 
something  higher  far,  to  be  clothed  upon  ; ” not  the 
destruction  or  transition  merely  of  our  desires  and 
appetites,  but  the  enlarging  and  ennobling  these  into 


204 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


a higher  and  better  life.  In  tliis  chapter,  the  Apostle 
sets  himself  to  controvert  this  erroneous  notion.  And 
he  does  it  by  a twofold  line  of  argument  ; first,  by  his- 
torical proofs  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ,  and 
after  that  he  proves  the  truth  of  the  resurrection  by  the 
demonstration  of  the  absurdity  of  all  opposite  views. 

I.  In  the  first  place,  by  historical  proofs  of  the  resur- 
rection of  Jesus  Christ.  These  are  contained  manifestly 
in  the  earlier  verses,  from  the  fourth  to  the  end  of  the 
eighth  verse,  where  he  shows  that  Christ  Avas  seen, 
after  His  resurrection,  by  Cephas,  then  by  the  twelve  ; 
after  that,  by  above  five  hundred  brethren  at  once  ; 
and,  last  of  all,  by  himself  also,  as  of  one  born  out  of 
due  time.”  The  first  thing  here  which  the  Apostle  has 
to  do,  is  to  set  at  rest  at  once  and  for  ever  the  question 
of  ivliat  was  the  apostolic  doctrine.  For  these  men  did 
not  set  themselves  up  against  the  Apostle’s  teaching, 
but  they  misunderstood  what  that  teaching  actually 
was.  For  example,  there  are  instances  where  St.  Paul 
himself  applies  the  term  resurrection  to  the  spiritual 
life,  and  these  passages  were  taken  up  by  these  Co- 
rinthians, as  if  they  referred  to  the  only  Resurrection. 
In  the  eleventh  verse,  therefore,  he  tells  them. 

Whether  it  were  I or  they”  — ^.  e,  the  other  Apos- 
tles— so  we  preached,  and  so  ye  believed :”  and  then 
he  tells  them  that  the  Christian  doctrine  was  not 
merely  that  there  should  be  an  Immortality,  but  rather 
tlds^  that  there  should  be  a resurrection  ; not  that  there 
should  be  a mere  formless  existence,  but  that  there 
should  be  an  existence  in  a Form.  And  he  tells  them 
further,  that  the  resurrection  was  not  merely  a resur- 
rection, but  the  resurrection  ; the  historical  fact  of  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  being  the  substantial  pledge 
of  our  immortality  and  our  resurrection.  By  all  his 
(earnestness  in  saying  this,  the  Apostle  Paul  testifies  to 
the  immense  value  and  importance  of  historical  Chris- 
tianity. 

Now,  brethrcen,  l(‘t  us  understand  this  matter.  There 
are  two  forms  in  which  it  is  conceivable  that  Chris- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


205 


tianity  may  exist : tlie  one  is  essential  Christianity  ; the 
other,  historical  Christianity.  By  the  first  we  mean 
the  essentials  of  the  Christian  doctrine.  If  we  may 
suppose,  for  the  sake  of  argument,  that  without  the  aid 
of  Christ,  without  the  intervention  of  His  mediatorial 
intercession,  a man  could  arrive  at  all  the  chief  Chris- 
tian doctrines  ; for  instance,  that  God  is  the  Father  of 
all  tlie  human  race,  and  not  of  a mere  section  of  it ; 
that  all  men  are  His  children  ; that  it  is  a Divine 
Spirit  which  is  the  source  of  all  goodness  in  man  ; that 
the  righteousness  acceptable  in  His  sight  is  not  cere- 
monial, but  moral,  goodness  ; that  the  only  principle 
which  reconciles  the  soul  to  God,  making  it  at  one  with 
God,  is  Self-sacrifice  — he  would  have  arrived  at  the 
essence  of  Christianity.  And  this  is  not  a mere  suppo- 
sition, a simple  hypothesis.  For  history  tells  us  that 
before  the  Redeemer’s  advent  there  were  a few  who,  by 
the  aid  of  the  Spirit  of  God,  had  reached  to  a knowledge 
which  is  marvellous  and  astonishing  to  us.  And,  in- 
deed, the  ancient  fathers  loved  to  teach  of  such  men, 
that  they,  even  although  heathen,  by  the  Eternal  Word 
within  them  had  been  led  to  the  reception  of  those 
truths  which  Christ  came  to  teach  : so  that  as  amongst 
the  Gentiles,  they,  without  the  law,  did  by  nature 
the  things  contained  in  the  law,”  so  likewise  those  men, 
without  the  knowledge  of  the  actual  historical  Jesus 
Christ,  had  gained  the  knowledge  of  truths  which  came 
from  his  Spirit. 

By  historical  Christianity,  however,  we  mean  not 
those  truths  abstractedly  considered,  but  as  actually 
existing  in  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ ; not  merely  the 
truth  that  God  is  our  Father,  but  the  belief  that  though 
no  man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time,”  yet  the  only- 
begotten  Son  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  He  hath  de- 
clared Him ; ” not  merely  the  truth  of  the  sonsliip  of 
our  Humanity,  but  that  there  is  One  above  all  others 
who,  in  the  highest  and  truest  sense,  is  the  only-begot- 
ten Son  of  God  ; not  merely  that  goodness  and  spiritual 
excellence  is  the  righteousness  which  is  acceptable  in 
God's  sight,  but  that  these  are  not  mere  dreams  and 
18 


203 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


aspirations  of  our  Humanity,  l)ut  tliat  tliey  are  actual 
realities,  aud  have  truly  existed  here  below  in  the  life 
of  One — the  man  Christ  Jesus:”  not  merely  the 
abstract  law  of  self-sacrifice,  but  the  real  Self-sacrifice 
— the  one  atoning  Sacrifice  which  has  redeemed  the 
whole  world.  Now,  to  this  historical  Christianity  the 
Apostle  bears  the  strongest  testimony  when  he  comes  to 
these  facts,  that  Jesus  Christ  had  been  seen  by  Cephas, 
and  the  other  Apostles,  and  by  the  five  hundred  breth- 
ren, and  by  himself. 

Brethren,  let  us  understand  this  fully.  The  principle 
we  lay  down  is  this  : Ileverence  in  persons  precedes  the 
belief  in  truths.  We  will  grant  that  there  have  been  a 
few  remarkable  exceptions  in  the  human  race,  who,  by 
God’s  Spirit  within  them,  have  reached  truth  without 
knowing  Him  who  is  the  Way,  the  Truth,  and  the  Life  ; 
but  this  is  not  the  rule.  One  in  ten  thousand  may  have 
so  attained  it,  but  for  the  remaining  nine  thousand  nine 
hundred  and  ninety-nine  the  rule  is  rather,  that  it  is  not 
by  our  desires  or  aspirations,  or  our  intellect,  that  we 
reach  the  truth,  but  it  is  by  believing  first  in  persons 
who  have  held  the  truth.  And  so,  those  truths  which 
you  hold  deepest  you  have  reached,  not  by  the  illumin- 
ation of  your  own  intellect,  but  you  have  reached  them 
first  by  trusting  in  some  great  or  good  one^  and  then, 
through  him,  by  obtaining  credible  evidence  of  those 
truths. 

Take,  for  instance,  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  : 
sometimes  it  appears  distinct  and  credible,  at  others  it 
appears  almost  incredible.  And  if  we  look  into  our- 
selves we  shall  find  that  the  times  when  it  appeared 
almost  incredible  were  those  in  which  we  began  to 
despair  of  human  nature  — when  some  great  crime  or 
meanness  had  taken  place  which  made  us  almost  dis- 
gusted with  our  humanity,  and  set  us  wondering  why 
such  things  should  be  ])ermitted  to  live  liereafter.  And 
the  moments  when  we  believed  most  strongly  and 
mightily  in  our  resurrection  and  immortality,  were  the 
moiiK'nts  wh(*n  we  felt  assured  that  human  iierfectibility 
was  no  (lr(‘jim,  since  we  sa  w the  (*.vidence  of  a goodness 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


207 


most  like  God’s,  wliicli  could  not  be  limited  by  death. 
Carry  on  this  principle,  and  then  you  have  the  very 
spirit  of  historical  Christianity.  For,  brethren,  we  do 
not  believe  that  there  shall  be  a Life  to  come,  merely 
because  there  is  something  within  us  which  craves  for 
it,  but  because  we  have  believed  in  the  life,  and  death, 
and  resurrection  of  the  Man  of  Nazareth ; because  that 
glorious  life  has  kindled  our  lives,  and  because  Human- 
ity through  Him  has  become  a noble  thing ; and  all  the 
littleness  which  we  meet  with  in  ourselves  and  in  our 
fellow-men  is  but  as  nothing  when  balanced  against  that 
great,  that  perfect  Humanity.  Hence  it  is  that  the 
language  often  used  in  our  own  day  about  an  absolute 
Christianity,  separate  from  the  personality  of  Jesus 
Christ,  is  after  all  but  a dream.  Our  Christianity  is 
not  merely  the  abstract  truths  which  Christ  taught,  but 
Christ  Himself,  who  lived,  and  died,  and  rose  again  for 
us,  our  Redeemer  and  our  God. 

II.  We  pass  on  now  to  consider  the  second  line  of 
argument  by  which  the  Apostle  substantiated  the  truth 
of  the  Life  to  come,  and  of  a Resurrection  in  Form, 
which  is  one  of  a totally  dilferent  description.  The  argu- 
ment is  well  known  among  logicians  by  the  name  of 
the  reductio  ad  absardam^  when  a man  can  show,  not 
so  much  that  his  own  opinions  are  true,  as  that  all 
others  which  contradict  them  are  false,  and  end  in  a 
monstrous  absurdity.  This  is  precisely  the  line  taken 
by  the  Apostle  Paul  in  these  first  twenty  verses.  And 
the  first  monstrous  absurdity  to  which  he  drives  the 
opponents  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection  is  this  — 

If  there  be  no  resurrection  of  the  dead,  then  is  Christ 
not  risen.”  Now,  let  us  endeavor  to  understand  the 
absurdity  implied  here.  You  will  observe  the  Apostle 
waives,  at  once,  all  those  arguments  which  might  arise 
out  of  the  eternal  nature  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  contem- 
plates Him  for  a moment  simply  as  a mortal  man  ; and 
he  says  it  is  an  absurdity  to  believe  that  that  Man  perished. 
Here,  when  on  this  earth,  the  Son  of  Man  grounded 
His  pretensions  on  this,  that  He  should  rise  again  from 


208 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


tlie  dead.  If,  then,  He  did  rise  from  the  dead,  His 
testimony  was  true  ; if  He  did  not.  He  was  an  impostor. 
On  this  point  He  joined  issue  botli  with  the  Pharisees 
and  the  Sadducees  while  he  was  yet  in  tlie  world. 
The  Sadducees  denied  the  possibility  of  a resurrection  ; 
the  Pharisees  denied  the  possibility  of  His  resurrection  ; 
and  the  Hio;h  Priest  laid  a seal  on  His  o:rave,  tliat  Mis 

V o ■ 

disciples  might  not  hold  out  to  tlie  world  that  He  had 
risen  from  the  dead.  Now,  if  Christ  be  not  risen, 
argued  the  Apostle,  you  are  driven  to  this  monstrous 
supposition,  that  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  were 
right,  and  that  the  Son  of  Man  was  wrong ; you  are 
driven  to  this  supposition,  that  a pure  and  just  and  holy 
life  is  not  a whit  more  certain  of  attaining  to  God’s  truth 
than  a false,  and  selfish,  and  hypocritical  one.  Nay, 
more : you  are  driven  to  this  supposition,  that  when 
the  Son  of  Man  hung  upon  the  cross,  and  there  came 
across  his  mind  one  moment  of  agonizing  doubt,  fol- 
lowed by  a bright  moment  of  joyful  and  confiding 
trust  — you  are  driven  to  the  supposition  that  the  doubt 
was  right,  and  that  the  trust  was  wrong  ; that  when  He 
said,  Father,  into  thy  hands  I commend  my  spirit,’’ 
God’s  reply  to  that  prayer  was  ‘^Annihilation!”  that 
Pie,  who  had  made  His  life  one  perpetual  act  of  conse- 
cration to  His  leather’s  service,  received  for  His  reward 
the  same  fate  as  attended  the  blaspheming  malefactor. 
Brethren,  there  may  be  some  who  can  entertain  such 
belief,  but  the  credulity  which  receives  the  most  mon- 
strous superstitious  is  infinitely  less  than  theirs.  The 
mind,  which  can  on  such  supposition  disbelieve  the 
Resurrection,  is  such  a marvellous  mixture  of  credulity 
and  incredulity,  as  must  be  almost  unparalleled  in  the 
history  of  tlie  human  species. 

2.  Once  more : the  Apostle  drives  his  opponents  to 
this  absurdity  — If  tliere  be  no  Resurrection  of  the 
dead,  tlie  (hiristian  faith  is  vain  ; ye  are  yet  in  your 
sins.  “ IF  Christ  be  not  risen,  theu  is  our  preaching 
vain,  and  your  liiith  is  also  vain.”  Now,  what  he  here 
imiilies  is,  that  the  Christian  faith,  in  such  a case,  must 
have  failcHi  in  redeeming  man  from  sin.  Because  he 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


209 


assumes  that,  except  in  the  belief  of  the  Resurrection, 
the  quitting  of  sin,  and  the  rising  in  mastery  over  the 
flesh  and  its  desires,  is  utterly  impossible  to  man.  Let 
us  eat  and  drink,  for  to-morrow  we  die,’’  is  an  inevitable 
conclusion.  And  you  are  driven  also  to  this  conclu- 
sion — that,  just  as  all  other  religions  have  failed  in 
redeeming  man  from  sin,  the  Christian  religion  has  also 
failed.  It  has  become  the  fashion  in  these  days  to  hold 
that,  just  in  proportion  as  a belief  in  the  resurrection 
enters  into  our  motives  for  right-doing,  that  right-doing 
loses  its  value  ; and  in  a very  remarkable  but  very 
sophistical  work,  published  not  many  months  ago,  it  is 
argued,  that  he  alone  can  be  enabled  to  do  any  really 
good  spiritual  work  who  disbelieves  in  a life  hereafter, 
and,  for  this  reason,  that  he  alone  does  good  for  its  own 
sake,  and  not  from  the  hope  of  reward.  It  is  not  for  a 
future  life  that  such  a one  works,  but  for  posterity : he 
loves  the  men  around  him,  knowing  all  the  while  that 
he  himself  must  perish.  Brethren,  let  us  examine  the 
depths  of  this  sophistry.  In  the  first  place,  you  will 
observe  that,  in  removing  the  hope  of  the  Life  to  come, 
you  have  taken  away  all  value  from  the  present  life  — 
all  that  makes  life  worth  possessing,  or  mankind  worth 
living  for.  Why  should  we  live  and  labor  for  such  a 
posterity,  for  beings  scarcely  higher  than  the  half- 
reasoning elephant.”  And  thus,  in  endeavoring  to  give 
worth  to  human  goodness,  you  have  taken  away  the 
dignity  and  value  of  human  existence.  Besides,  you 
will  observe  the  sophistry  of  the  argument  in  this  re- 
spect, that  to  do  right  christianly  is  not  doing  so  for 
the  sake  of  happiness  in  the  world  to  come,  but  for 
Life.  This  it  is  which  is  the  deep,  irrepressible  craving 
of  the  human  soul.  “ More  life  and  fuller  ’tis  we 
want.”  So  that  the  Apostle  forces  us  to  the  conclusion, 
that  if  there  be  no  resurrection  from  the  dead,  there  is 
nothing  whatever  that  can  save  man  from  sin : and  the 
Gospel,  sanctioned^as  it  is  by  the  Gross  of  Christ  itself, 
turns  out  to  be  one  fatal,  tremendous,  awful  failure. 

3.  Again  : an  absurdity  arises  from  such  a supposi- 
tion as  this,  that  the  Apostles  would  be  found  false 
18* 


210 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


witnesses.  Yea,  and  we  are  found  fdse  witnesses  of 
God;  because  we  have  testified  of  God  tliat  lie  raised 
up  Christ:  whom  lie  raised  not  u]),  if  so  be  tliat  tlie 
dead  rise  not.”  There  is  soinethino;  very  touching, 
Cliristian  brethren,  in  the  manner  in  wliicli  the  Apostle 
writes  tliis  monstrous  supposition.  Tliat  lie  should  be 
a false  witness  ! — a thing  to  him  incredible  and  mon- 
strous. You  will  observe,  he  does  not  leave  room  one 
moment  for  supposing  the  possibility  of  a mistake. 
There  was  no  mistake.  It  was  either  true,  or  it  was  a 
falsehood.  The  resurrection  of  Christ  was  a matter  of 
fact;  James,  Cephas,  the  twelve,  the  five  hundred, 
either  had,  or  had  not,  seen  the  Lord  Jesus;  Thomas 
either  had,  or  had  not,  put  his  finger  into  the  print  of  the 
nails  : either  the  resurrection  was  a fact,  or  else  it  follow- 
ed with  the  certainty  of  demonstration  that  the  Apostles 
were  intentional  false  witnesses  before  God.  There 
may  be  some,  however,  to  whom  this  would  not  seem 
so  monstrous  a supposition  as  it  did  to  the  Apostle  Paul. 
Well,  let  us  examine  it  a little  more  closely.  There 
is  a certain  instinct  within  us  generally  which  enables 
us  to  detect  when  a man  is  speaking  the  truth.  When 
you  are  listening  to  an  advocate,  you  can  generally  tell 
whether  he  really  believes  what  he  says.  You  may 
generally  see  whether  he  is  earnest  merely  to  gain  his 
cause,  or  because  he  believes  that  his  client’s  cause  is 
right.  Truth,  so  to  speak,  has  a certain  ring  by  which 
it  may  be  known.  Now,  this  chapter  rings  with  truth  ; 
every  word  is,  as  it  were,  alive  with  it ; and  before  you 
can  believe  that  there  is  no  resurrection  of  the  dead, 
you  must  believe  that  this  glorious  chapter,  with  all  its 
earnestness  of  argument,  and  all  its  richness  of  meta- 
j)hor  and  force  of  illustration,  was  written  by  one  who 
was  spc^aking  what  was  false,  and  who,  moreover,  knew 
at  his  lieart  that  he  was  s])eaking  wliat  was  filse. 

A notlier  witness  to  this  fact  was  the  Apostle  Peter. 
P>r(;thr(‘n,  there  are  two  things  whicli^rarely  go  together, 
coiinige  and  falsehood  : a brave  man  is  almost  always 
an  honest  man,  and  St.  Pi'ter  was  by  nature  a brave 
man.  I>iit  let  ns  (pialily  this  assertion.  There  are  cir- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


211 


cumstances  in  which  a brave  and  honest  man  may  be 
betrayed  by  the  sudden  force  of  temptation  into  a dere- 
liction from  the  truth,  and  such  a thing  had  occurred  in 
the  life  of  St.  Peter.  In  the  moment  of  Christ’s  appre- 
hension he  said  that  which  was  not  true,  and  after- 
wards, as  we  should  have  expected  from  his  character, 
‘‘he  went  out  and  wept  bitterly.”  Now,  it  was  after 
this  bitter  repentance,  when  his  whole  demeanor  was 
changed,  and  his  trembling  hesitation  had  given  way  to 
certainty,  that  he  went  forth  and  stood,  as  upon  a rock, 
before  the  kings  and  councils  of  the  world,  protesting 
that  he  knew  that  the  Lord  was  risen.  Brethren,  there 
must  be  a cause  given  for  this.  Can  we  believe  that 
the  man  who  laid  his  hand  on  the  axe’s  sharp  edge  ; or 
he  who  asked  that  he  might  be  crucified  with  his  head 
downwards,  as  unworthy  to  die  as  his  Redeemer  died 
— can  we  believe  that  he  went  through  all  his  life 
falsely  ? that  his  life  was  not  only  a falsehood,  but  a 
systematic  and  continued  falsehood,  kept  up  to  the  very 
last ; and  that  the  brave-hearted,  true  man,  with  his 
dying  lips  gave  utterance  to  a lie  ? 

4.  Once  more  : the  opponents  of  this  doctrine  of  the 
resurrection  are  driven  to  the  conclusion,  that  those  who 
have  fallen  asleep  in  Christ  have  perished.  Brethren, 
let  us  examine  that  absurdity.  And,  in  the  first  place, 
distinguish  that  monstrous  supposition  from  one  wliicli 
somewhat  resembles  it.  The  Apostle  does  not  say  that 
it  is  impossible  that  man  should  perish.  It  is  a favorite 
argument  with  many  to  point  to  the  lofty  attainments 
and  the  irrepressible  aspirations  of  the  human  soul  as  a 
proof  of  its  immortality.  I am  free  to  confess,  that  argu- 
ments such  as  these,  founded  upon  the  excellence  of 
human  nature,  have  no  power  with  me.  For  human 
life,  taken  in  itself  and  viewed  in  its  common  aspects, 
is  a mean  and  paltry  thing,  and  there  are  days  and  hours 
when  it  seems  to  us  almost  incredible  that  such  things 
as  we  are  should  live  ao;ain  at  all.  There  is  nothing 
which  makes  annihilation  impossible.  God,  in  the  su- 
perabundance of  His  power,  creates  seeds  merely  to 
cast  them  again  into  anniliilation.  We  do  not  see  why 


212 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES. 


He  cannot  create  souls,  and  cast  tlicm  again  into  noth- 
ingness, as  easily  as  lie  does  seeds.  Tliey  have  lived  — 
they  have  had  their  twenty,  or  forty,  or  sixty  years  v^f 
existence  — why  should  they  ask  for  more  ? Tliis  is  not 
St.  Paul’s  argument.  He  does  not  speak  of  the  excel- 
lence of  human  nature  : it  is  not  from  this,  that  he  draws 
his  inference  and  proof  of  immortality.  It  is  this,  that 
if  there  be  no  resurrection  of  the  dead,  then  they  who 
have  fallen  asleep  in  Christ  ” have  perished : in  other 
words,  the  best,  the  purest,  the  noblest  of  the  human 
race.  For  even  our  adversaries  will  grant  us  this,  that 
since  the  days  of  Christ  there  have  been  exhibited  to 
the  world  a purity,  a self-sacrifice,  a humility,  such  as 
the  world  never  saw  before  : earth  in  all  its  ages  has 
nothing  which  can  be  compared  with  “ the  noble  army 
of  martyrs.”  Now,  you  are  called  upon  to  believe  that 
all  these  have  perished  everlastingly : that  they  served 
God,  loved  Plim,  did  His  will,  and  that  He  sent  them 
down,  like  the  Son  of  God,  into  annihilation  ! You 
are  required  to  believe,  moreover,  that  as  they  attained 
to  this  goodness,  purity,  and  excellence  by  believing 
what  was  false,  namely,  the  Resurrection,  so  it  is  only 
by  believing  what  is  true,  that  they  could  arrive  at  the 
opposite,  that  is,  the  selfish  and  base  character.  So  that 
we  are  driven  to  this  strange  paradox  — that  by  be- 
lieving that  which  is  false,  we  become  pure  and  noble  ; 
and  bv  believinj^  that  which  is  true,  we  become  base 
and  selfish  ! Believe  this  who  can  ? 

These  are  the  difficulties  of  infidelity,  — we  put  them 
before  the  infidel  triumphantly.  And  if  you  are  unable 
to  believe  his  argument,  if  you  cannot  come  to  his  con- 
clusion, then  there  remains  the  other  and  the  plain 
conclusion  of  the  Apostle:  Now  is  Christ  risen  from 
the  dead,  and  become  the  first-fruits  of  them  that 
slept.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


213 


LECTURE  XXVIII. 

1 Corinthians,  xv.  13  - 20,  — But  if  there  be  no  resurrection  of  the 
dead,  then  is  Christ  not  risen  : — And  if  Christ  be  not  risen,  then 
is  our  preaching  vain,  and  your  faith  is  also  vain.  — Yea,  and  we 
are  found  false  witnesses  of  God;  because  we  have  testified  of  God 
that  he  raised  up  Chiust  : whom  he  raised  not  up,  if  so  be  that  the 
dead  rise  not.  — For  if  the  dead  rise  not  then  is  not  Christ  raised: 
— And  if  Christ  be  not  raised,  your  faith  is  vain;  ye  are  yet  in  your 
sins.  — Then  they  also  which  are  fallen  asleep  ’in  Christ  are  per- 
ished. — If  in  this  life  only  we  have  hope  in  Christ,  we  are  of  all 
men  most  miserable.  — But  now  is  Christ  risen  from  the  dead,  and 
become  the  first-fruits  of  them  that  slept.” 

The  Cliurcli  of  Corintli  exhibited  in  the  time  of  the 
Apostle  Paul  the  remarkable  spectacle  of  a Christianity 
existing  together  with  a disbelief  in  immortality.  The 
history  of  the  anomaly  was  this,  that  when  Christianity 
first  came  into  contact  with  the  then  existing  philosophy 
and  religion  of  the  world,  it  partly  superseded  them, 
and  partly  engrafted  itself  upon  them.  The  result  of 
that  engraftation  was,  that  the  fruit  which  arose  from 
the  admixture  savored  partly  of  the  new  graft,  and 
partly  of  the  old  stock.  Among  the  philosophies  of  the 
world  then  existing,  there  was  an  opinion  which  regarded 
all  evil  as  belonging  to  the  body  — not  that  which  the 
Apostle  speaks  of  as  the  body  of  sin  and  death  ” — but 
the  real  material  body.  It  was  held,  that  the  cause  of 
sin  in  the  world  was  the  admixture  of  pure  spirit  with 
an  inherently  corrupt  materialism.  The  result  of  this 
opinion  was  a twofold  heresy,  which  branched  into  di- 
rections totally  divergent.  According  to  the  first,  men 
believing  in  the  depravity  of  matter,  held  that  material- 
ism was  all  evil,  that  the  spirit  was  itself  innocent, 
and  that  to  the  body  alone  was  guilt  to  be  referred. 
The  result  of  this  conception  of  Christianity  was  the 
belief,  that  the  spirit  was  permitted  to  act  as  it  chose,  for 


214 


LECTUIIKS  ON  THE  EIHSTLES 


to  the  body  was  all  the  sin  imputed.  Tliis  was  tlie  ori- 
gin of  that  Antinomianism  which  St.  James  so  forcibly 
contradicts.  The  other  heresy  was  in  a totally  diher- 
ent  direction  : men  believing  that  the  body  was  the 
cause  of  all  evil,  endeavored  to  crush  and  entirely 
subdue  it ; and  this  was  the  origin  of  that  ascetic 
system,  against  which  St.  Paul  sets  himself  in  so  many 
of  his  Epistles. 

These  opinions  then  existing  in  the  world,  it  was  to 
be  expected  that  when  Christianity  was  preached  to 
such  men,  the  expressions  of  Christianity  should  be  mis- 
understood and  misinterpreted.  For  every  expression 
used  by  the  Apostles  had  already  been  used  by  those 
philosophers  ; so  that  when  the  Apostles  spake  of  Pe- 
generation,  ‘•‘Yes,”  said  these  men,  ‘‘this  is  the  religion 
we  want ; we  desire  the  regeneration  of  society.” 
When  they  spake  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  and  told 
men  to  rise  above  the  lusts  of  the  flesh : “Yes,”  they 
replied,  “ this  is  the  resurrection  we  need ; a spiritual 
not  a literal  one : the  resurrection  is  past  already,  the 
only  grave  from  which  we  are  to  be  delivered  is  the 
grave  of  sin.”  And  when,  again,  the  Apostle  told  of 
the  redemption  of  the  body,  “ Yes,”  said  they,  “ we 
will  cleave  to  this,  for  it  is  the  redemption  of  the  body 
tliat  we  want.”  So  that,  in  the  Church  of  Corinth,  the 
resurrection,  plainly  as  it  was  preached  by  the  Apos- 
tles, had  become  diluted  into  a question  of  the  temporal 
regeneration  of  society. 

Now  what  was  remarkable  in  this  form  of  infidelity 
was,  that  it  was  to  some  extent  spiritual,  sublime,  and 
unselfish.  Sublime,  for  it  commanded  to  dispense  with 
all  enjoyments  of  the  senses ; spiritual  and  unselfish, 
because  it  demanded  virtue  quite  separate  from  the  hope 
of  immortality.  And  wliat  makes  this  interesting  to 
us  now  is,  that  ours  somewhat  resembles  tliat  old  infi- 
delity ; there  are  sounds  heard  which,  widel}^  as  they 
may  differ  from  those  Corinthian  views  in  some  respects, 
agrcie  in  this,  that  there  is  much  in  them  spiritual  and 
sublime.  We  are  told  that  men  die,  and  that  an  end 
then  comes  upon  them ; that  the  hope  of  immortality  is 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


215 


merely  a remnant  of  our  selfishness,  and  that  the  only 
immortality  for  man  is  to  enter  by  faith  into  the  kingdom 
of  goodness.  Now  the  way  in  whicdi  the  Apostle  Paul 
met  these  views  was  with  that  line  of  argument  which 
consists  in  demonstrating  the^impossibility  of  such  a sup- 
position, by  deducing  from  it  all  the  absurdities  in 
which  it  clothes  itself.  For  one  moment  he  grants  it ; 
there  is  then  no  resurrection,  no  immortality ! Let  us, 
therefore,  see  the  consequences  : they  are  so  awful  and 
incredible,  that  no  sane  mind  can  possibly  receive  them. 
In  other  words,  the  Apostle  demonstrates  that,  great  as 
may  be  the  difficulty  in  believing  in  immortality,  the 
difficulty  in  disbelieving  it  is  tenfold  greater. 

We  will  then  endeavor,  to-day,  to  elaborate  and  draw 
out  the  four  incredibilities  of  which  the  Apostle  speaks. 
The  first  absurdity  of  which  he  speaks,  resulting  from  a 
denial  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus,  is,  we  are  found 
false  witnesses  before  God.”  False  witnesses,  not  mis- 
taken witnesses.  He  allows  no  loophole  of  escape  : the 
resurrection  is  a fact,  or  else  a falsehood.  And  now 
consider  the  results  of  that  supposition,  — Wlio  are  they 
that  are  the  false  witnesses  of  the  resurrection  ? Among 
them  we  find  prominently  two  ; with  these  two  the 
Book  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  is  chiefly  occupied. 
The  flrst  is  St.  Peter,  the  other  St.  Paul.  St.  Peter 
goes  forth  into  the  world  strong  in  his  conviction  that 
Jesus  Christ  is  risen  from  the  dead ; for  in  the  early 
ages  of  Christianity  the  doctrine  most  preached  was  not 
the  Cross,  but  the  Resurrection.  From  a mistaken  view 
of  the  writings  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  as  when  he  said, 
I preach  Christ  crucifled,”  it  has  been  inferred,  that 
the  chief  doctrine  of  his  life  was  the  Crucifixion ; but  it 
was  the  crucified  and  risen  Saviour  that  he  preached, 
rather  than  the  mere  fact  of  the  Crucifixion.  In  the 
early  ages  it  was  almost  unnecessary  to  speak  of  the 
Cross,  for  the  crucifixion  of  the  Redeemer  was  a thing 
not  done  in  a corner : no  one  thought  of  denying  that. 
But  instead  of  this,  the  Apostles  went  forth,  preaching 
that  from  which  the  world  recoiled,  that  Christ  had 
risen.  If  the  Apostle  Peter  went  forth  to  proclaim  the 


21G 


LECTURES  ON  THE  ERLSTLES 


Gospel  to  the  Jews,  even  Ivefore  tlie  Sanliedrim  and 
before  all  the  people,  this  was  his  doctrine,  Jesus  and 
the  Ilesnrrection.’’  Tims  tanglit  the  Apostle  Peter. 
His  character  was  well  known  to  be  this,  brave  — fear- 
less, impetiions  — exactly  that  character  to  which  false- 
hood is  impossible.  The  brave  man  never  is  habitually 
a liar;  in  moments  of  fearfnlness,  as  when  Peter  denied 
his  Lord,  he  may  be  untrue  ; but  he  will  not  be  so  when 
he  has  courage  in  his  soul. 

Another  remark  respecting  these  men  being  false 
witnesses  is,  that  St.  Paul  must  have  been  a false  de- 
ckarer  of  the  truth,  and  the  incredibility  of  this  we  are 
content  to  rest  on  the  single  chapter  now  before  us, 
namely,  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  the  first  Epistle  to  the 
Corinthians.  In  common  life  we  judge  of  a witness  by 
his  look  and  actions  ; so  let  us  judge  this  chapter.  You 
will  observe,  that  it  is  not  the  eloquence  of  a hired 
writer,  neither  is  it  the  eloquence  of  a priest,  conceal- 
ing and  mystifying  the  doctrine : the  denial  of  the 
Resurrection  had  kindled  the  earnest,  glorious  nature 
of  the  Apostle  into  one  burning,  glowing  fire  ; every 
word  is  full  of  life.  We  defy  you  to  read  the  chapter 
and  believe  that  Paul  was  doubtful  of  the  truths  he 
there  asserted.  This  is  one  of  the  impossibilities  ; if 
there  be  no  resurrection  of  the  dead,  then  these  two 
glorious  Apostles  were  false  witnesses ! 

The  second  incredible  thing  is  this  : if  there  be  no 
resurrection,  Christ  is  not  risen.  Remark  the  severe, 
rigorous  logic  of  St.  Paul : he  refuses  to  place  the  Hu- 
man race  in  one  category,  and  Jesus  Christ  in  another. 
If  flesus  rose,  then  the  Human  race  shall  also  rise  ; 
but  if  tliere  be  no  resurrection  for  man,  then  the  Apos- 
tle, liolding  to  his  logic,  says,  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of 
(fod,  is  not  risen. 

Now  let  us  endeavor  to  understand  the  results  of  this 
conclusion,  and  wliat  was  its  bearing.  Last  Friday  we 
tri(‘d  to  m(‘ditate  on  that  death  which  all  men,  with 
vai’i(*d  meanings  in  their  expressions,  have  agreed  to 
call  Divine.  We  endeavored  to  meditate  on  the  dark- 
ness ol*  that  Human  Soul,  struggling  in  weakness  and 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


217 


perplexity  with  the  mystery  of  death.  We  tried  to 
think  on  that  Love,  mightier  than  death,  whicdi  even 
in  the  hour  of  insult  could  calmly  excuse  the  circum- 
stances of  that  insult,  and  forgive  it.  We  tried  to 
think  of  that  sentence,  as  the  sentence  of  God,  which 
promised  forgiveness  and  a place  in  Paradise  to  the 
dying  penitent.  We  meditated  on  that  infinite  ten- 
derness of  human  affection,  which,  in  the  dying  hour, 
provided  for  a mother  a son,  and  for  a friend  a brother ; 
seeming  to  assure  ns  that  these  domestic  affections  shall 
last  beyond  the  grave.  We  tried  to  think,  too,  of  His 
trust  in  commending  His  soul  into  His  Father’s  hands. 
And,  lastly,  we  considered  that  marvellous  expression 
— in  the  orimnal,  one  sino;le  word  — which  declared 
that  the  Duty  and  the  Life  of  Christ  Avere  only  closed 
together.  Now  if  there  be  no  resurrection  of  the  dead, 
then  that  Life  was  cast  aside  by  God  as  worthless.  It 
was,  and  is  not : and  that  pardon  which  He  besought, 
and  which  seemed  so  Avorthy  of  God  to  grant,  Avas  not 
ratified  above  : and  that  earthly  darkness  was  but  the 
prelude  to  that  eternal  night  into  Avhich  the  Soul  of  the 
Redeemer  was  entering ; that  sublime  trust  Avas  not 
accepted  by  the  Father,  but  sternly  and  cruelly  re- 
jected ; Judas  forsook  Him,  and  God,  like  Judas,  for- 
sook Him  too ! The  Pharisees  conquered,  and  God 
stood  by  and  ratified  their  triumph ! And  then  the 
disbeliever  in  immortality  asks  us  to  believe  in,  to  trust, 
and  to  love  that  God  Avho  treated  Jesus  so.  This  is  the 
impossibility,  the  incredibility,  founded  on  the  moral 
character  of  God,  Avhich  Ave  are  compelled  to  receive, 
if  we  deny  the  Resurrection  ! 

The  third  absurdity  is,  that  the  Christian  faith  is 
then  unable  to  free  from  sin.  The  ground  upon  which 
the  Apostle  stood  Avas  this,  that  no  faith  can  save  from 
sin  without  the  belief  in  immortality.  We  are  then 
driven  to  this  conclusion,  that  since  every  other  faith 
has  failed  hitherto,  the  Christian  faith  has  failed  also, 
since  the  immortality  it  professes  is  vain.  Now  one 
objection  by  which  this  argument  has  been  met  is  this : 

That  goodness,”  sav  the  objectors,  wdiich  rests  only 
19 


2tS 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


on  the  belief  of  immortality,  is  but  a form  of  selfishness 
after  all.”  And  I do  believe  that  there  are  men  wlio 
reject  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection  chiefly  on  tliis 
ground,  because  they  tliiidv  that  only  by  denying  it  can 
they  deliver  man  from  selfishness.  And,  because  this 
view  is  ])lausible,  and  because  it  contains  in  it  some 
germ  of  truth,  let  us  look  at  it  for  a moment.  If  a 
man  does  good  for  the  sake  of  reward,  or  if  he  avoids 
evil  on  account  of  the  punishment  due  to  it,  so  far  his 
goodness  is  but  a form  of  selfishness  ; and  observe,  that 
the  introduction  of  the  element  of  eternity  does  not 
alter  the  quality  of  it.  But  when  we  come  to  look  at 
the  effect  produced  upon  us  in  liberating  us  from  sin  by 
the  belief  in  immortality,  we  shall  see  that  it  is  not  the 
thought  of  reward  that  enters  into  that  conception  ; 
when  you  have  got  to  the  lowest  depth  of  your  heart, 
you  will  find  that  it  is  not  the  mere  desire  of  happiness, 
but  a craving  as  natural  to  us  as  the  desire  for  food  — 
the  craving  for  nobler,  higher  life.  To  be  with  God, 
to  see  God,  and  to  understand  Him  — this  is  meant  by 
the  desire  of  everlastini^  life.  This  is  the  lanOTao-e  of 
Christianity  : Ye  are  the  children  of  light.”  Ye  are 
stated  in  the  Bible  in  words,  and  symbolically  in  bap- 
tism, to  be  the  children  of  God  ; ye  are  the  heirs  of 
Immortality  ; do  not  live  as  if  ye  were  only  the  heirs  of 
Time.  Narrow  this  conception,  limit  that  infinite  ex- 
istence to  seventy  years,  and  all  is  inevitably  contracted, 
every  hope  stunted,  high  aims  become  simply  impos- 
sible. 

And  now,  my  Christian  brethren,  we  ask,  what  is  the 
single  motive  that  can  be  brouo;ht  forward  to  liberate 
a man  from  selfishness,  when  you  have  taken  away 
this  belief  in  immortality?  Will  you  tell  him  to  live 
lor  posterity  ? — what  is  posterity  to  him  ? or  for  the 
human  race  in  a^es  hereafter?  — but  what  is  the  hu- 
man  i-ace  to  him,  especially  when  its  eternity  is  taken 
from  it,  and  you  have  declared  it  to  be  only  mortal  ? 
The  senttaice  of  the  A])ostle  is  plain  : Your  iaith  is 
vain,  ye  are  yet  in  your  sins.”  Infidelity  must  be 
selfish  : if  to-morrow  we  die,  then  to-day  let  us  eat  and 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


219 


drink  ; it  is  but  a matter  of  taste  liow  we  live.  If 
man  is  to  die  the  death  of  the  swine,  why  may  he  not 
live  the  life  of  the  swine  ? If  there  be  no  immortality, 
why  am  I to  be  the  declarer  and  defender  of  injured 
rights  ? Why  am  I not  to  execute  vengeance,  knowing 
that  if  it  be  not  executed  now,  it  never  can  be  ? Tell 
us  why,  when  every  passion  is  craving  for  gratification, 
a man  is  to  deny  himself  the  satisfaction,  if  he  is  no 
exalted  thing,  no  heir  of  immortality,  but  only  a mere 
sensitive  worm,  endowed  with  the  questionable  good  of 
a consciousness  of  his  own  misery?  These  are  the 
questions  which  infidelity  has  to  answer. 

The  last  incredibility  from  which  the  Apostle  argues 
is,  that,  if  there  be  no  resurrection,  then  they  that  have 
fallen  asleep  in  Christ  have  perished.  When  the  Apos- 
tle speaks  of  those  fallen  asleep  in  Christ,  he  does  not 
necessarily  mean  only  those  who  have  borne  the  Chris- 
tian name,  but  those  who  have  lived  with  the  mind  of 
Christ  and  died  with  His  Spirit.  Those  who  in  the 
elder  dispensation  only  dimly  descried  the  coming  of  that 
purer  day,  scarcely  knowing  what  it  was  ; who  still  in 
that  faith  lived  the  high  and  noble  life  of  the  ancient 
Jew  ; also  those,  neither  Jew  nor  Christian,  who  lived 
in  heathen  days,  but  were  yet  not  disobedient  to  the 
Eternal  Voice  speaking  in  their  hearts;  and  who  by 
means  of  that  lived  above  their  generations,  penetra- 
ting into  the  invisible,  and  so  became  heirs  of  the 
righteousness  which  is  by  faith  ; all  those,  therefore, 
have  perished  ! Now  see  what  these  skeptics  require 
us  to  believe  : that  all  those  who  have  shed  a sunshine 
upon  earth,  and  whose  affections  were  so  pure  and  good 
that  they  seemed  to  tell  you  of  an  Eternity,  perished 
utterly,  as  the  selfish  and  impure  ! You  are  required 
to  believe  that  those  who  died  in  the  field  of  battle, 
bravely  giving  up  their  lives  for  others,  died  even  as 
the  false  and  the  coward  dies.  You  are  required  to 
believe  that,  when  there  arose  a great  cry  at  midnight, 
and  the  Wreck  went  down,  they  who  passed  out  of  the 
world  with  the  oath  of  blasphemy,  or  the  shriek  of  de- 
spair, shared  the  same  fate  with  those  who  calmly  re- 


220 


LECTURES  ON  IMIE  EPISTLES 


signed  their  departing  spirits  into  their  Father’s  hand, 
with  notliing  but  an  awful  silence  to  greet  them,  like 
that  which  greeted  the  priests  of  Baal  on  Mount  Car- 
mel ! You  are  required  to  believe  that  the  pure  and 
wise  of  this  world  have  all  been  wrong,  and  the  selfish 
and  sensual  all  right.  If  from  this  you  shrink  as  from 
a thing  derogatory  to  God,  then  there  remains  but  that 
conclusion  to  which  St.  Paul  conducts  us  : “ Now  is 
Christ  risen  from  the  dead.”  The  spiritual  resurrection 
is  but  the  mere  foretaste  and  pledge  of  the  literal.  Let 
us,  brethren,  seek  to  rise  with  Christ  above  this  world 
and  our  own  selves,  for  every  act  tells  on  that  Eternity, 
every  thought  and  every  word  reap  an  everlasting 
harvest. 

Therefore,”  says  the  Apostle,  in  the  conclusion  of 
this  chapter,  be  ye  steadfast,  immovable,  always 
abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye 
know  that  your  labor  is  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


221 


LECTURE  XXIX. 


1 Corinthians,  xv.  21  - 34.  — “ For  since  by  man  came  death,  by  man 
came  also  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. — For  as  in  Adam  all  die, 
even  so  in  Christ  shall  all  be  made  alive.  — But  every  man  in  his 
own  order  : Christ  the  first-fruits;  afterward  they  that  are  Christ’s 
at  his  coming.  — Then  cometh  the  end,  when  he  shall  have  delivered 
up  the  kingdom  to  God,  even  the  Father  ; when  he  shall  have  put 
down  all  rule  and  all  authority  and  power.  — For  he  must  reign,  till 
he  hath  put  all  enemies  under  his  feet.  — The  last  enemy  that  shall 
be  destroyed  is  death.  — For  he  hath  put  all  things  under  his  feet. 
But  when  he  saith,  All  things  are  put  under  him,  it  is  manifest  that 
he  is  excepted,  which  did  put  all  things  under  him.  — And  when  all 
things  shall  be  subdued  unto  him,  then  shall  the  Son  also  himself  be 
subject  unto  him  that  put  all  things  under  him,  that  God  may  be  all 
in  all.  — Else  what  shall  they  do  which  are  baptized  for  the  dead , if 
the  dead  rise  not  at  all  ? why  are  they  then  baptized  for  the  dead  ? 
— And  why  stand  we  in  jeopardy  every  hour  ? — I protest  by  your 
rejoicing  which  I have  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,  I die  daily. — If  after 
the  manner  of  men  I have  fought  with  beasts  at  Ephesus,  what 
advantageth  it  me,  if  the  dead  rise  not?  let  us  eat  and  drink;  for 
to-morrow  we  die.  — Be  not  deceived  : evil  communications  corrupt 
good  manners. — Awake  to  righteousness,  and  sin  not;  for  some  have 
not  the  knowledge  of  God  : I speak  this  to  your  shame.” 

In  following  the  train  of  argument  contained  in  this 
chapter,  it  must  be  clearly  kept  in  remembrance  that 
the  error  combated  by  St.  Paul  was  not  the  denial  of 
immortality,  but  the  denial  of  a resurrection.  The 
ultra-spiritualizers  in  Corinth  did  not  say,  “ Man  per- 
ishes for  ever  in  the  grave,”  but,  The  form  in  which 
the  spirit  lived  shall  never  be  restored.  From  the  mo- 
ment death  touches  earthly  life,  Man  becomes  for  ever 
a bodiless  spirit.”  No  doubt  in  this  chapter  there  are 
passages  in  which  the  Apostle  speaks  of  Immortality, 
but  they  are  only  incidental  to  the  general  argument ; 
as  for  example,  Let  us  eat  and  drink,  for  to-morrow 
we  die.”  The  chief  thing,  therefore,  to  lay  stress  on  is, 
19* 


222 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


tliat  ill  the  early  Cliurcli  there  was  not  so  much  a 
denial  of  an  Immortality,  as  of  a Resurrection. 

In  the  earlier  part  of  tliis  cliapter  St.  Paul  proved  the 
Resurrection  by  the  fact  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ, 
Avhich  he  treats  neither  as  a doctrine,  nor  a hope,  nor 
an  aspiration  of  tlie  soul,  but  as  a historical  reality 
which,  duly  recorded  and  witnessed,  took  place  actually 
and  visibly  upon  this  earth.  Eye-witnesses  tell  us,  said 
the  Apostle,  that  on  numerous  occasions  openly,  and 
after  death,  they  saw,  felt,  heard,  and  talked  with 
Christ.  On  that  fact  Christianity  rests,  and  if  there  is 
anything  in  the  universe  that  can  be  substantiated  it  is 
that  fact.  With  this  he  triumphantly  concludes  that 
rediictio  ad  ahsiirdwm^  which  is  contained  in  verses 
13  -20.  Now  is  Christ  risen  from  the  dead.” 

To-day  we  consider  — 

I.  The  results  of  Christ’s  resurrection  to  us. 

II.  Corroborative  proofs. 

I.  The  first  result  is  thus  expressed : He  is  become 
the  first-fruits  of  them  that  sleep.”  The  expression  is 
J ewish ; and  to  discover  what  it  implies,  we  must  re- 
member the  ancient  custom.  The  first-fruits  of  the 
harvest  were  dedicated  to  God,  whereby  He  put  in  His 
claim  for  the  whole,  just  as  shutting  up  a road  once  a 
year  puts  in  a claim  of  proprietorship  to  the  right  of  way 
for  ever.  It  was  thus  St.  Paul  understood  the  cere- 
mony : for  if  the  first-fruits  be  holy,  the  lump  is  also 
holy.”  Thus  when  the  Apostle  says  that  Christ  is 
the  first-fruits  of  them  that  slept,”  he  implies  that  part 
of  the  harvest  has  been  claimed  for  God,  and,  therefore, 
that  the  rest  is  His  too.  The  resurrection  of  Christ 
is  a pledge  of  the  resurrection  of  all  who  share  in  His 
Humanity. 

Now  two  questions  arise  on  this.  1.  Why  does  this 
result  t:ike  ])lace?  2.  When  will  it  take  place? 

1.  The  ground  on  which  it  rests:  — “For  as  in 
Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ  shall  all  be  made  alive.” 
— ver.  22.  Two  doctrines  are  given  to  us  in  this  text 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


223 


— original  sin,  and  original  righteousness  ; the  doctrine 
of  the  natural  corruption  and  fault  of  our  nature,  and 
the  doctrine  of  the  Divine  life  which  belongs  to  our 
higher  nature. 

And  first:  In  Adam  all  die.” 

Do  not  understand  this  as  if  the  Apostle  merely  said, 

If  you  sin  as  Adam  sinned,  you  will  die  as  Adam 
died.”  This  were  mere  Pelagianism,  and  is  expressly 
condemned  in  the  article  of  our  Church  on  Original 
Sin.  According  to  the  Scriptures  we  inherit  the  first 
man’s  nature,  and  that  nature  has  in  it  the  mortal,  not 
the  immortal.  And  yet  there  are  in  all  of  us  two  na- 
tures, that  of  the  animal  and  that  of  the  spirit,  an  Adam 
and  a Christ. 

Let  us  see  what  St.  Paul  meant  by  being  in 
Adam.”  He  explains  himself:  The  first  man  was  of 
the  earth,  earthy ; and  again,  ‘‘  The  first  man  Adam 
was  made  a living  soul.”  But  here  we  must  recollect 
that  the  term  a living  soul  ” means  a mere  natural 
man.  The  soul,  as  used  by  St.  Paul,  is  distinguished 
from  the  body  and  the  spirit,  as  that  part  of  our  com- 
plex humanity  which  embraces  all  our  natural  powers. 

A living  soul  ” is,  then,  the  term  used  by  the  Apostle 
to  express  the  natural  man  endowed  with  intellectual 
powers,  with  passions,  and  with  those  appetites  which 
belong  to  us  in  common  with  the  animals.  In  this  our 
immortality  does  not  reside  ; and  it  is  from  fixing  our 
attention  on  the  decay  of  tliese  that  doubt  of  our  immor- 
tality begins.  It  is  a dismal  and  appalling  thing  to  wit- 
ness the  slow  failure  of  living  powers : as  life  goes  on  to 
watch  tlie  eye  losing  its  lustre,  and  the  cheek  its  round- 
ness ; to  see  the  limbs  it  was  once  such  a pure  delight 
to  gaze  on,  becoming  feeble  and  worn  ; to  perceive  the 
memory  wander,  and  the  features  no  longer  bright  with 
the  light  of  expression  ; to  mark  the  mind  relax  its 
grasp ; and  to  ask  the  dreary  question  — Are  these 
things  immortal  ? You  cannot  but  disbelieve,  if  you  rest 
your  hope  of  immortality  on  their  endurance.  When 
you  have  identified  these  things  with  the  man^  no  won- 
der if  a cold  and  faithless  feelino’  steals  over  the  heart  — 

O 


224 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


no  wonder  if  the  gloomy  thouglit  be  yours.  The  end  is 
coming,  the  long  night  on  which  no  dawn  shall  ever 
break  ! 

Now  the  simple  reply  to  all  this  is,  that  the  extinc- 
tion of  these  powers  is  no  proof  against  immortality, 
because  they  are  not  the  seat  of  the  immortal.  They 
belong  to  the  animal  — to  the  organs  of  our  intercourse 
with  the  visible  world.  And  though  it  may  be  proved 
tliat  that  eye  shall  never  open  again,  those  limbs  never 
again  thrill  with  life,  yet  such  proof  does  not  touch  the 
truth  that  the  man  — the  spirit  — shall  live  for  ever- 
more. Therefore,  it  is  not  in  what  we  inherit  from 
Adam  the  man,  but  in  what  we  hold  from  Christ  the 
Spirit,  that  our  immortality  resides. 

Nay,  more : It  is  in  the  order  of  God’s  providence 
that  the  growth  of  the  Christ  within  us  shall  be  in  exact 
proportion  to  the  decay  of  the  Adam.  Though  our 
outward  man  perish,  yet  the  inward  man  is  renewed 
day  by  day.”  And  this  evidence  of  our  immortality, 
blessed  be  God  ! is  perpetually  and  not  uncommonly 
before  us.  It  is  no  strange  or  unknown  thing  to  see 
the  spirit  ripening  in  exact  proportion  to  the  decay 
of  the  body.  Many  a sufferer  in  protracted  illness 
feels  each  day  more  deeply  the  powers  of  the  world  to 
come.  Many  an  aged  one  there  is,  who  loses  one  by 
one  all  his  physical  powers,  and  yet  the  spiritual  in  him 
is  mightiest  at  the  last.  Who  can  read  that  ancient 
legend  of  the  Apostle  John  carried  into  the  Christian 
Church,  able  only  to  articulate,  Little  children,  love 
one  another,”  without  feeling  that  age  and  death  touch 
not  the  Immortal  Love  ? 

2.  The  next  question  which  we  proposed  was.  When 
will  this  result  take  place?  This  is  answered  by  St. 
Paul  in  the  twenty-third  and  following  verses  : every 
mail  in  his  own  order : Christ  the  first-fruits  ; afterward 
they  that  are  Christ’s  at  His  coming;  then  cometh  the 
eiui.” 

Confessedly  this  is  a mysterious  jiassage  ; neverthe- 
less, let  us  see  how  much  is  clear.  First,  that  the 
resurrect  ion  cannot  be  till  the  Kingdom  is  complete. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


225 


Paul  does  not  say  that  the  consciousness  of  the  departed 
shall  not  begin  till  then,  but  that  the  Resurrection  — 
that  finished  condition  when  Humanity  sliall  be  ful- 
filled — is  not  to  commence  till  the  second  coming  of 
Christ. 

Secondly,  that  certain  hindrances  at  present  prevent 
the  perfect  operation  of  God  in  our  souls.  Evil  in  a 
thousand  forms  surrounds  us.  We  are  tlie  victims  of 
physical  and  moral- evil,  and  till  this  is  put  down  for 
ever,  the  completeness  of  the  individual  cannot  be  ; for 
we  are  bound  up  with  the  universe.  Talk  of  the  per- 
fect happiness  of  any  unit  man  while  the  race  still 
mourns  ! Why,  the  evils  of  the  race  fall  on  him  every 
day.  Talk  of  the  perfect  bliss  of  any  spirit  while  the 
spiritual  kingdom  is  incomplete  ! No,  the  golden  close 
is  yet  to  come,  and  the  blessing  of  the  individual  parts 
can  only  be  with  the  blessing  of  the  whole.  And  so 
the  Apostle  speaks  of  the  whole  creation  groaning  and 
travailing  in  pain  together  until  now,  waiting  for  the 
adoption,  to  wit,  the  redemption  of  our  body.” 

Thirdly,  that  the  mediatorial  Kingdom  of  Christ 
shall  be  superseded  by  an  immediate  one  ; therefore, 
the  present  form  in  which  God  has  revealed  Himself  is 
only  temporary.  When  the  object  of  the  present 
Kingdom  of  Christ  has  been  attained  in  the  conquest 
of  evil,  there  will  be  no  longer  need  of  a mediator. 
Then  God  will  be  knowm  immediately.  We  shall  know 
Him,  when  the  mediatorial  has  merged  in  the  immediato- 
rial,  in  a way  more  high,  more  intimate,  more  sublime, 
than  even  through  Christ.  Then,  when  the  last  hin- 
drance, the  last  enemy,  is  removed,  which  prevents  the 
entire  entrance  of  God  into  the  soul,  we  shall  see  Him 
face  to  face,  know  Him  even  as  we  are  known,  awake 
up  satisfied  in  His  likeness,  and  be  transformed  into 
]mre  recipients  of  the  Divine  Glory.  That  will  be  the 
Resurrection. 

II.  Corroborative  proofs. 

These  are  two  in  number,  and  both  are  argumenta 
ad  hominem.  They  are  not  proofs  valid  to  all  men, 


226 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


but  cogent  only  to  Cliristians,  as  these  Corinthians 
were.  Tliey  assume  Cliristian  grounds  wliicli  would  he 
admitted  by  all  who  believed  in  Christ.  ^Jdiey  only  go 
to  prove,  not  that  a resurrection  must  be,  but  that  it  is 
the  doctrine  of  Christianity,  although  a party  in  the 
Corinthian  Church  denied  it. 

The  first  of  these  proofs  is  given  in  the  twenty-ninth 
verse.  It  is  well  known  that  it  is  a disputed  passage  ; 
and,  after  many  years’  study  of  it,  I am  compelled  to 
come  to  this  conclusion,  that  no  interpretation  that  has 
been  offered  is  entirely  free  from  objection.  All  that  I 
can  do  is,  to  put  before  you  the  chief  interpretations.  By 
some  it  is  supposed  to  refer  to  vicarious  baptism,  a cus- 
tom which  certainly  prevailed  in  later  ages  of  the 
Church,  when  a living  Christian  was  baptized  in  the 
place  of  a catechumen  who  had  died  before  this  sacra- 
ment could  be  administered.  According  to  this  idea, 
the  Christian  work  was  not  so  much  to  convert  the 
living  as  to  baptize  for  the  dead.  There  is  an  immense 
improbability  that  Paul  could  have  sustained  a super- 
stition so  abject,  even  by  an  allusion.  He  could  not 
have  even  spoken  of  it  without  anger.  It  is  more 
probable  that  the  custom  arose  from  an  erroneous  inter- 
pretation of  this  passage.  There  is  another  opinion 
worth  mentioning,  namely,  that  the  passage  is  an  ellip- 
tical one.  When  baptized,  Christians  made  a profession 
of  a belief  in  a resurrection,  and  St.  Paul  asks  them 
here,  What,  then,  was  the  meaning  of  their  profes- 
sion ? Why  were  they  baptized  into  the  faith  of  a 
resurrection,  if  there  were  none  ? ” 

We  may  learn  from  this  the  value  of  baptism  to  the 
Church.  Another  such  instance  occurs  in  the  sixth 
chapter  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Pomans : the  heresy  of 
Antinomianism  had  crept  in  ; Let  us  sin,”  said  some, 
that  grace  may  abound.”  In  refutation  of  this,  St. 
Jhiul  a])peals  to  ba])tism.  Here  he  refutes  a heresy 
concerning  the  resurrection  by  another  appeal  to  bap- 
tism. Some  will  say,  If  baptism  be  but  a form  or  an 
instrument,  liaving  not  in  itself  any  mysterious  power, 
of  what  purpose  is  baptism  ? ” Brethren,  I reply,  of 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


227 


much,  every  way ; and  if  it  were  only  for  this,  it  would 
be  much,  that  so  long  as  it  remains  in  the  Christian 
Church,  there  remains  a ground  of  appeal  against 
heresy. 

The  second  argument  is  in  the  thirtieth  verse:  Why 
stand  we  in  jeopardy  every  hour  ? ’’  If  the  future  life 
were  no  Christian  doctrine,  then  the  Avhole  apostolic 
life,  nay,  the  whole  Christian  life,  were  a monstrous 
and  senseless  folly.  For  St.  Paul’s  life  was  one  great 
living  death  ; he  was  ever  on  the  brink  of  martyrdom. 
Figuratively,  speaking  popularly,  after  the  manner 
of  men,”  he  had  fought  as  with  wild  beasts  at  Ephesus. 
Grant  an  immortality,  and  all  this  has  a meaning ; 
deny  it,  and  it  was  in  him  a gratuitous  folly.  A life  of 
martyrdom  proves,  at  all  events,  that  men  are  in  earn- 
est, though  they  may  not  be  true.  The  value  of  such 
a testimony  to  immortality  must  be  further  proved,  by 
considering  whether  the  grounds  were  such  that  men 
could  judge  of  them  unmistakably.  St.  Paul  devotes  the 
beginning  of  this  chapter  to  the  proof  of  the  reality  of 
the  fact.  Afterwards,  by  a reduetio  ad  absurdiim^  he 
argues  that  if  Christ  be  not  risen,  the  whole  question 
of  ri^ht  and  wrono-  is  decided  in  favor  of  wrono*.  St. 
Paul  does  not  say,  We  are  mistaken,”  but  he  says, 
We  are  found  liars.” 

Nowin  what  does  the  absurdity  of  this  consist?  The 
Apostles  must  have  been  either  good  or  bad  men.  If 
good,  that  they  should  have  told  this  lie  is  incredible, 
for  Christianity  is  to  make  men  not  false,  but  better, 
more  holy,  more  humble,  and  more  pure.  If  bad  men, 
why  did  they  sacrifice  themselves  for  the  cause  of  good- 
ness ? In  suffering  and  in  death,  they  witnessed  to 
tlie  truth  which  they  taught ; and  it  is  a moral  mon- 
strosity that  good  men  should  die  for  what  they  be- 
lieved to  be  a lie.  It  is  a gross  absurdity  that  men 
should  bear  indignity,  woe,  and  pain,  if  they  did  not 
believe  that  there  would  be  an  eternal  life  for  which  all 
this  was  a preparation.  For  if  souls  be  immortal,  then 
Christianity  has  been  an  inestimable  blessing : spirits 
have  begun  a sanctification  here  which  will  progress 


228 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPTSTI.ES 


'I 


for  ever:  but  if  souls  be  not  immortal,  then  it  is  quite 
a question  whether  Christianity  has  blessed  the  world 
or  not.  We  personally  may  think  it  has,  but  if 
we  reject  the  immortality  of  man,  there  is  much  to 
be  said  on  the  other  side.  A recent  writer  has 
argued  very  plausibly  that  Christianity  has  done 
nothing.  And  if  immortality  be  untrue,  then  we 
may  almost  agree  with  him  when  we  remember  the 
persecutions,  the  prison,  and  the  torture  chamber,  the 
religious  wars  and  tyrannies  which  have  been  inflicted 
and  carried  on  in  the  name  of  Christ ; when  we  re- 
member that  even  in  this  nineteenth  century  cannibal- 
ism and  the  torture  of  prisoners  are  still  prevailing. 
Again,  are  we  quite  sure  that  Christian  America,  with 
her  slavery,  is  a great  advance  on  pagan  Rome  ? or 
Christian  England  either,  with  her  religious  hatreds, 
and  her  religious  pride  ? If  the  Kingdom  of  God 
comes  only  with  observation,  I am  not  certain  that  we 
can  show  cause  why  that  life  of  sublime  devotion  of  St. 
Paul’s  was  not  a noble  existence  wasted. 

And  again,  if  the  soul  be  not  immortal,  Christian 
life,  not  merely  apostolic  devotedness,  is  a grand  im- 
pertinence.” Let  us  eat  and  drink,  for  to-morrow 
we  die,”  was  the  motto  and  epitaph  of  Sardanapalus  ; 
and  if  this  life  be  All,  we  defy  you  to  disprove  the 
wisdom  of  such  reasoning.  How  many  of  the  myriads 
of  the  human  race  would  do  right,  for  the  sake  of 
right,  if  they  were  only  to  live  fifty  years,  and  then 
die  for  evermore  ? Go  to  the  sensualist,  and  tell  him 
that  a noble  life  is  better  than  a base  one,  even  for  that 
time,  and  he  will  answer  : ‘‘1  like  pleasure  better  than 
virtue  : you  can  do  as  you  please  ; for  me,  I will  wisely 
enjoy  my  time.  It  is  merely  a matter  of  taste.  By 
taking  away  my  hope  of  a resurrection  you  have 
dwarfed  good  and  evil,  and  shortened  their  conse- 
quences. If  I am  only  to  live  sixty  or  seventy  years, 
there  is  no  eternal  right  or  wrong.  By  destroying  the 
thought  of*  immortality,  I have  lost  the  sense  of  the 
infinitude  of  evil,  and  the  eternal  nature  of  good.” 

B(‘sid(‘s,  with  our  hojx's  of  immortality  gone,  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


229  ' 


value  of  Humanity  ceases,  and  people  become  not  worth 
living  for.  We  have  not  got  a motive  strong  enough 
to  keep  us  from  sin.  Christianity  is  to  redeem  from 
evil : it  loses  its  power,  if  the  idea  of  immortal  life  be 
taken  away.  Go,  then,  to  the  sensualist,  and  tell  him 
that,  though  the  theory  of  a Life  to  come  be  a dream, 
yet  that  here  the  pleasure  of  doing  right  is  a sublimer 
existence  than  that  of  self-indulgence.  He  will  answer 
you,  Yes,  but  my  appetites  are  strong,  and  it  willf 
cost  me  much  to  master  them.  The  struggle  will  be 
with  pain  ; and,  at  last,  only  a few  years  will  be  left. 
The  victory  is  uncertain,  and  the  present  enjoyment 
is  sure,  and  there  is  the  banquet  of  life  before  me,  and 
the  wine  sparkling  in  the  cup,  and  passion  rising  in  its 
might ; why  should  I refrain  ? ” 

Do  you  think  you  can  arrest  that  with  some  fine 
sentiment  about  nobler  and  baser  being  ? Why,  you 
have  made  him  out  base  already.  He  dies,  you  tell 
him,  like  a dog  ; why  should  he  live  like  an  angel  ? 
You  have  the  angelic  tendency,  and  prefer  the  higher 
life.  Well,  live  according  to  your  nature:  but  he  has 
the  baser  craving,  and  prefers  the  brute  life.  Why 
should  he  not  live  it  ? Ye  who  deny  the  resurrection 
to  immortality,  answer  me  that ! 

No,  my  brethren  ; the  instincts  of  the  animal  will 
be  more  than  a match  for  all  the  transcendental  reason- 
ings of  the  philosopher.  If  there  be  in  us  only  that 
which  is  born  of  the  flesh,  only  the  mortal  Adam,  and 
not  the  immortal  Christ,  if  to-morrow  we  die,  then  the 
conclusion  cannot  be  put  aside  — Let  us  eat  and 
drink,  for  the  Present  is  our  All.” 


20 


230 


I.EUTU11ES  0:s  THE  EPlSTIJiS 


LECTURE  XXX. 

1 Corinthians,  xv.  35  - 45.  — “ But  some  mfin  will  say,  TIow  are  the 
dead  raised  up  ? and  with  what  body  do  they  come  ? — Thou  fool, 
that  wdiich  thou  sowest  is  not  quickened  except  it  die:  — And 
that  which  thou  sowest,  thou  sowest  not  that  body  that  shall  be,  but 
bare  grain,  it  may  chance  of  wheat,  or  of  some  other  grain  : — But 
God  giveth  it  a body  as  it  hath  pleased  him,  and  to  every  seed 
his  own  body.  — All  flesh  is  not  the  same  flesh  : but  there  is  one  kind 
of  flesh  of  men,  another  flesh  of  beasts,  another  of  fishes,  and  an- 
other of  birds.  — There  are  also  celestial  bodies,  and  bodies  terres- 
trial : but  the  glory  of  the  celestial  is  one,  and  the  glory  of  the  terres- 
trial is  another.  — There  is  one  glory  of  the  sun,  and  another  glory  of 
the  moon,  and  another  glory  of  the  stars  : for  one  star  diflereth 
from  another  star  in  glory.  — So  also  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 
It  is  sown  in  corruption;  it  is  raised  in  incorruption  : — It  is  sown  in 
dishonor;  it  is  raised  in  glory  : it  is  sown  in  weakness;  it  is  raised 
in  power  — It  is  sown  a natural  body;  it  is  raised  a spiritual  body. 
There  is  a natural  body,  and  tliere  is  a spiritual  body.  — And  so  it 
is  written.  The  first  man  Adam  wtis  made  a living  soul;  the  last 
Adam  was  made  a quickening  spirit.” 


We  liave  already  divided  this  chapter  into  three 
sections.  In  the  first  and  second  sections  we  spoke  of 
the  proofs  of  the  Resurrection  ; and  these  we  found  to 
be  twofold  — the  reductio  ad  ahsurdum^  which  demon- 
strated it  by  showing  the  monstrous  admissions  a denier 
of  the  Resurrection  was  compelled  to  make ; and  the 
historical  facts  of  Christ’s  resurrection. 

In  the  third,  we  arrived  at  the  truth  that  His  resur- 
rection involved  in  it  ours,  and  we  replied  to  the  ques- 
tions Why  and  When.  We  asked,  Why  does  it  imply 
our  resurrection  ? and  the  answer  given  was,  that  in 
us  there  exists  a twofold  nature  — the  animal  or  Ad- 
amic, containing  in  it  no  germ  of  immortality ; and  the 
Divine  or  Christ-like,  the  spirit  which  we  receive  from 
the  Eternal  Word,  and  by  right  of  which  we  are  heirs 
of  tli(i  Immortal  Idfe.  For  as  in  Adam  all  die,  even 
so  in  (dii’ist  shall  all  be  made  alive.”  We  asked.  When 
shall  this  resurrection  hnally  take  ])lace  ? and  the  re])ly 
given  was.  Not  till  tlie  period  whieli  is  called  the  Second 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


231 


Advent.  St.  Paul,  leaving  the  question  of  Immor- 
tality untouched,  pronounces  that  Resurrection  cannot 
be  till  the  end  of  all  things.  For  all  is  moving  on  to  a 
mighty  consummation,  and  the  blessing  of  an  individual 
part  can  only  be  with  the  blessing  of  the  whole. 

To-day  we  shall  be  engaged  on  the  fourth  section  — 
the  credibility  of  a resurrection.  St.  Paul,  in  this  por- 
tion of  the  chapter,  replies  to  the  question  of  possibility, 
How  are  the  dead  raised  ? ” And  this  he  answers  by 
arguments  from  analogy.  As  the  seed  dies  before  it 
can  be  quickened,  as  there  is  one  glory  of  the  sun  and 
another  glory  of  the  moon,  as  the  imperfect  precedes 
the  perfect,  as  our  natural  life  is  earlier  than  our  spir- 
itual — so  is  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 

First,  then,  as  to  the  nature  of  the  argument  from 
analogy.  Analogy  is  probability  from  a parallel  case. 
We  assume  that  the  same  law  which  operates  in  the 
one  case  will  in  another,  if  there  be  a resemblance  be- 
tween the  relations  of  the  two  things  compared.  Thus, 
when  in  reply  to  the  disciples,  who  did  not  comprehend 
the  necessity  of  His  death,  Christ  said,  Except  a corn 
of  wheat  fall  into  the  ground  and  die,  it  abideth  alone  : 
but  if  it  die,  it  bringeth  forth,  much  fruit,”  He  was  rea- 
soning from  analogy.  For  as  in  nature  life  comes 
through  death,  so  also  is  it  in  the  world  of  spirit.  The 
Law  of  Sacrifice,  which  accounts  for  the  one  fact,  will 
also  explain  the  other.  Thus,  when  St.  Paul  shows 
that  the  life  of  the  seed  is  continued  after  apparent  death 
in  a higher  form,  and  argues,  that  in  like  manner  the 
human  spirit  may  be  reunited  to  form,  he  reasons  from 
analogy.  He  assumes  that  there  is  a probability  of  the 
same  law  operating  in  one  case  as  operated  in  the 
other. 

But  we  must  remember  how  far  this  argument  is 
valid,  and  what  is  its  legitimate  force.  It  does  not 
amount  to  proof ; it  only  shows  that  the  thing  in  ques- 
tion is  credible.  It  does  not  demonstrate  that  a resur- 
rection must  be,  it  only  shows  that  it  may  be.  For  it 
does  not  follow  that  because  the  Law  of  Sacrifice  is 
found  in  the  harvest,  therefore  it  shall  be  found  in  the 


232 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EITSTJ.ES 


redemption  of  the  world,  and  that  Christ’s  death  must 
redeem ; but  it  does  follow  that  this  doctrine  of  Atone- 
ment is  not  incredible,  for  it  is  found  to  be  in  harmony 
with  the  analogies  of  nature.  The  conceivableness  of 
the  Atonement  follows  from  the  analogies  drawn  from 
nature’s  laws  working  in  the  wheat ; but  the  of 

the  Atonement  is  the  word  of  Christ  Himself. 

It  does  not  follow  that,  because  after  death  the  life  in 
a corn  of  wheat  appears  again,  therefore  the  life  in  the 
human  soul  will  be  continued  ; but  it  does  follow  that 
the  resurrection  is  quite  intelligible  and  conceivable, 
and  the  objector  who  says  it  is  impossible  is  silenced. 

Now,  it  is  in  this  way  that  St.  Paul  concludes  his 
masterly  argument.  He  proves  the  resurrection  from 
the  historical  fact,  and  by  the  absurdity  which  follows 
from  denial  of  it ; and  then  he  shows  that,  so  proved,  it 
is  only  parallel  to  a thousand  daily  facts,  by  the  analo- 
gies which  he  draws  from  the  dying  and  upspringing 
corn,  and  from  the  diverse  glories  of  the  sun,  and  moon, 
and  stars.  Let  us  distinguish,  therefore,  between  the 
relative  value  of  these  arguments.  We  live,  it  is  true, 
in  a world  filled  with  wondrous  transformations,  which 
suggest  to  us  the  likelihood  of  our  immortality.  The 
caterpillar  passes  into  the  butterfly,  the  snowdrop  dies 
to  rise  again.  Spring  leaps  to  life  from  the  arms  of  Win- 
ter, and  the  world  rejoices  in  its  resurrection.  God 
gives  us  all  this  merciful  assistance  to  our  faith.  But 
it  is  not  on  these  grounds  that  our  belief  rests.  These 
are  not  our  proofs  ; they  are  only  corroborations  and 
illustrations,  for  it  does  not  follow  with  certainty  that 
the  body  of  man  shall  be  restored  because  the  chrysalis, 
an  apparent  corpse,  still  lives.  No : we  fetch  our 
proofs  from  the  Word  of  God,  and  the  nature  of  the 
human  soul : and  we  fetch  our  probabilities  and  illus- 
trations from  the  suggestive  world  of  types  which  lies 
all  around  us. 

We  y)ass  on  now,  in  the  second  jdace,  to  consider  the 
credibility  of  the  Resurrection  ; that  is,  how,  according 
to  right  reason,  we  can  believe  it  possible,  and  that  it  is 
not  irrational  to  believe  it.  Now  there  are  two  difficul- 


TO  THE  CORIXTHIANS. 


233 


ties  advanced : Firstly,  in  the  question,  How  are  the 
dead  raised  ? ” and  in  that  which  is  a mere  sneer, 
With  what  body  do  they  come  ? ” 

The  question,  How  are  the  dead  raised,  may  be  a 
philosophical  one.  Let  us  understand  it  plainly.  We 
are  told  that  the  entire  human  body  undergoes  a pro- 
cess of  change  every  certain  number  of  years,  so  that 
at  the  end  of  that  time  there  is  not  a single  particle 
which  is  the  same  as  at  first ; and  then  there  comes  this 
question.  How  shall  the  dead  be  raised  ? with  which  of 
these  bodies  do  they  come  ? And  again,  we  know  that 
the  human  body  is  dissolved  in  various  ways,  sometimes 
in  fire  ; and  then  comes  the  question.  How  are  all  these 
scattered  portions  to  reunite  ? do  we  really  mean  that 
the  sound  of  the  Archangel’s  trumpet  shall  bring  them 
all  together  ao;ain  ? And  then  those  who  are  wise  in 
such  matters  tell  us,  that  there  is  not  a single  portion  of 
the  globe  which  has  not,  some  time  or  other,  been  or- 
ganic form.  The  other  question  is  not  a philosophical 
one,  but  merely  a sneer.  With  what  body  do  they 
come  ? It  is  as  if  the  objector  had  said,  Let  there  be 
nothing  vague : tell  us  all  about  it  — you  who  assert 
you  are  inspired.” 

Now  to  these  objections  the  Apostle  Paul  replies  by 
analogy,  and  so  far  shows  the  credibility  of  the  Resur- 
rection. He  discerns  in  this  world  three  principles  : 
First,  that  life,  even  in  its  lowest  form,  has  the  power 
of  assimilating  to  itself  atoms  ; — he  takes  the  corn  of 
wheat,  which,  after  being  apparently  destroyed,  rises 
again,  appropriating,  as  it  grows,  all  that  has  affinity 
with  itself,  such  as  air  and  moisture:  that  body  with 
which  it  is  raised  may  be  called  its  own  body,  and  yet 
it  is  a new  body.  It  is  raised  anew,  with  stem,  and 
leaves,  and  fruit,  and  yet  all  the  while  we  know  that  it 
is  no  new  corn  : it  is  the  old  life  in  the  seed  reappear- 
ing, developed  in  a higher  form.  It  is  a marvellous 
thing  to  see  the  power  whereby  that  which  we  call  the 
germ  grows  ; how  nothing  can  withstand  it : how  it 
creeps,  climbs,  and  pierces  even  through  walls,  making 
for  itself  a way  everywhere.  Observe  the  force  of  the 


234 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTEES 


argument  tliat  arises  from  this  fact,  the  argument  of 
analogy.  It  does  not  ^yrove  the  Resurrection,  but  it 
shows  its  probability , 

The  second  analogy  that  St.  Paul  sees  in  nature  is, 
the  marvellous  superabundance  of  the  creative  power 
of  God.  God  has  planted  illimited  and  unnumbered 
things.  ‘‘  There  is  one  glory  of  the  sun,  and  another 
glory  of  the  moon,  and  another  glory  of  the  stars,’^ 
and  yet  there  is  a difference  between  them  — ^^one 
star  differeth  from  another  star  in  glory.”  There  arc 
gradations  in  all  these  forms  — bodies  celestial,  and 
bodies  terrestrial  — ‘‘but  the  glory  of  the  celestial  is 
one,  and  the  glory  of  the  terrestrial  is  another.”  Here 
is  an  answer  to  all  objections  — With  what  body  do 
they  come  ? ” Are  we  to  believe  that  God  has  exhausted 
His  creative  power,  that  He  has  done  all  He  could 
have  done,  and  that  He  could  make  no  new  form  ? 
Are  we  to  believe  that  the  Wisdom  and  the  Knowledge, 
which  have  never  been  fathomed  by  the  wisest,  are 
expended,  and  that  the  power  of  God  should  be  insut- 
ficient  to  find  for  the  glorified  spirit  a form  fit  for  it  ? 
We  simply  reply  to  the  objection — With  what  body 
do  they  come?’^  — Look  at  the  creative  power  of 
God?” 

The  third  principle  which  St.  Paul  refers  to,  is  the 
principle  of  progress.  The  law  of  the  universe  is  not 
Pharisaism  — the  law  of  custom  stereotyped,  and  never 
to  be  changed.  The  law  of  God’s  universe  is  progress  ; 
and  just  as  it  was  in  creation — first  the  lower,  and 
then  the  higher  — so  it  is  throughout,  progressive  hap- 
piness, progressive  knowledge,  progressive  virtue.  St. 
Paul  takes  one  instance  : That  was  not  first  which  is 
spiritual,  but  that  which  is  natural.”  At  first  we  lead 
a mere  animal  life  — the  life  of  instinct;  then,  as  we 
grow  older,  passion  succeeds  ; and  after  the  era  of  pas- 
sion our  spirituality  comes,  if  it  conies  at  all  — aj^ter^ 
and  not  bdfore,  St.  Paul  draws  a probability  from  this, 
that  what  our  childhood  was  to  our  manhood  — some- 
thing imperfect  followed  by  that  which  is  more  perfect 
— so  will  it  be  h(a*(‘after  : our  present  humanity,  with 
all  its  majesty,  is  nothing  more  than  human  infancy. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


235 


Lastly,  St.  Paul  finds  that  all  this  coincides  with  the 
yearnings  of  the  human  heart.  When  this  corrupt- 
ible shall  have  put  on  incorruption,  and  this  mortal 
shall  have  put  on  immortality,  then  shall  be  brought  to 
pass  the  saying  that  is  written,  Death  is  swallowed  up 
in  victory.”  This  is  the  substance  of  two  prophecies, 
one  in  Isaiah,  the  other  in  Hosea,  and  expresses  the 
yearnings  of  the  heart  for  immortality.  And  we  may 
observe,  that  these  yearnings  are  in  accordance  with 
our  own.  No  man,  in  a high  mood,  ever  felt  that  this 
life  was  really  all.  No  man  ever  looked  on  life  and 
was  satisfied.  No  man  ever  looked  at  the  world,  with- 
out hoping  that  a time  is  coming  when  that  creation, 
which  is  now  groaning  and  travailing  in  bondage,  shall 
be  brought  into  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  Son  of  God. 
No  man  ever  looked  upon  our  life,  and  felt  that  it  was 
to  remain  always  what  it  now  is : he  could  not,  and 
would  not,  believe  that  we  are  left  here  till  our  mor- 
tality predominates,  and  then  that  the  grave  is  all. 
And  this  feeling,  felt  in  a much  greater  and  higher 
degree,  becomes  prophecy.  Isaiah  says,  Death  shall 
be  swallowed  up  in  victory.”  We  find  a yearning  in 
our  own  hearts  after  immortality,  and  that  not  in  our 
lowest,  but  in  our  highest  moods ; and  when  we  look 
around,  instead  of  finding  something  which  damps  our 
aspirations,  we  find  the  external  world  corroborating 
them.  Then  how  shall  we  account  for  the  marvellous 
coincidence  ? Shall  we  believe  that  these  two  things 
point  to  nothing  ? Shall  we  believe,  and  shall  wej.  say, 
that  God  our  Father  has  cheated  us  with  a lie  ? There- 
fore St.  Paul  concludes  his  masterly  and  striking  argu- 
ment thus : When  this  corruptible  shall  have  put  on 
incorruption,  and  this  mortal  shall  have  put  on  immor- 
tality, then  shall  be  brought  to  pass  the  saying  that  is 
written,  Death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory.” 

Of  course,  if  there  be  no  Immortality  and  no  Resur- 
rection, it  matters  not  whom  you  injure,  nor  what  you 
do.  If  you  injure  him  who  has  trusted  you,  of  wha^ 
consequence  is  it  ? In  a few  years  all  will  be  past  and 
over.  And  if  there  be  no  Immortality  and  no  Resur- 


236 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


rection,  it  matters  not  what  jon  do  to  yourself,  whether 
you  injure  your  own  soul  or  not.  11  ut  if  there  be  a 
Life  to  come,  then  the  evil  deed  you  did  is  not  ended 
by  its  commission,  but  it  will  still  go  on  and  on.  The 
evil  you  have  done  to  others  will  remain  throughout 
Eternity  ; the  evil  you  have  done  to  your  own  soul  will 
spread ; as  when  you  throw  a stone  into  a pond  the 
circles  go  on  widening  and  spreading,  so  will  that  sin 
spread  and  increase  over  the  sea  of  Eternity.  If  there 
be  no  Resurrection,  then  there  are  deeds  of  sacrifice 
which  it  would  be  no  use  to  do ; but  if  there  be  an 
Immortality  and  a Resurrection,  then  whatever  good 
you  do  shall  never  be  left  unrewarded : the  act  of  pu- 
rity, the  act  of  self-denial,  the  act  of  sacrifice,  will 
ennoble  you,  making  you  holier  and  better.  “ Be  not 
deceived ; God  is  not  mocked  : for  whatsoever  a man 
soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap  ; ” or,  as  at  the  conclu- 
sion of  this  chapter : ‘‘  Therefore,  my  beloved  brethren, 
be  ye  steadfast,  forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  your  labor 
is  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord  ! ” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


23T 


LECTURE  XXXI. 


1 Corinthians,  xv.  46-68. — ‘^Howbeit  that  was  not  first  which  is 
spiritual,  but  that  which  is  natural  ; and  afterward  that  which  is 
spiritual.  — The  first  man  is  of  the  earth,  earthy : the  second  man 
is  the  Lord  from  heaven.  — As  is  the  earthy,  such  are  they  also 
that  are  earthy  : and  as  is  the  heavenly,  such  are  they  also  that  are 
heavenly. — And  as  we  have  borne  the  image  of  the  earthy,  we 
shall  also  bear  the  image  of  the  heavenly.  — Now  this  I say,  breth- 
ren, that  flesh  and  blood  cannot  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God;  neither 
doth  corruption  inherit  incorruption.  — Behold,  I shew  you  a mys- 
tery; We  shall  not  all  sleep,  but  we  shall  all  be  changed,  — In  a 
moment,  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  at  the  last  trump  : for  the 
trumpet  shall  sound,  and  the  dead  shall  be  raised  incorruptible, 
and  we  shall  be  changed.  — For  this  corruptible  must  put  on  incor- 
ruption, and  this  mortal  must  put  on  immortality.  — So  when  this 
corruptible  shall  have  put  on  incorruption,  and  this  mortal  shall 
have  put  on  immortality,  then  shall  be  brought  to  pass  the  saying 
that  is  written.  Death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory.  — 0 death,  where 
is  thy  sting  ? 0 grave , where  is  thy  victory  ? — The  sting  of  death 

is  sin;  and  the  strength  of  sin  is  the  law.  — But  thanks  be  to  God, 
which  giveth  us  the  victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  — 
Therefore,  my  beloved  brethren,  be  ye  steadfast,  unmovable,  always 
abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye  know  that 
your  labor  is  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord.” 


The  fifteenth  chapter  of  the  First  Epistle  to  the 
Corinthians,  which  has  so  often  fallen  on  our  ears  like 
music  in  the  night  amidst  funereal  blackness,  is  filled 
with  arguments,  presumptive  and  direct,  which  tend  to 
make  Immortality  credible  : and  amongst  others  St. 
Paul  uses  the  analogy  of  the  harvest,  and  argues  from 
it  the  resurrection  of  the  body:  It  is  sown  a natural 
body ; it  is  raised  a spiritual  body.” 

Now  many  an  objector,  on  hearing  this  saying,  might 
plausibly  ask.  Why  this  delay  ? why  should  not  God 
create  the  perfect  spiritual  life  at  once  ? St.  Paul  an- 
ticipates this,  and  in  answer  applies  a general  law  of  the 
universe  to  the  case  before  him.  Such  an  immediate 
life  of  spiritual  glory  would  be  contrary  to  the  Divine 


238 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


order  in  God’s  creation,  for  tlie  Law  of  that  order  is 
this  : Howbeit  that  was  not  first  which  is  spiritual, 
but  that  which  is  natural ; and  afterward  that  which  is 
spiritual.” 

Thus  we  have  here  a general  principle  adduced  for  a 
special  purpose,  which  principle  is  yet  not  confined  by 
St.  Paul  to  this  special  case,  but  is  felt  by  him  to  be  one 
of  universal  application.  For  it  is  the  peculiarity  of 
this  philosophical  Apostle,  that  he  connects  Christianity 
with  God’s  universe.  In  the  Atonement,  in  the  Re- 
surrection, he  sees  no  strange  isolated  facts,  but  the 
Truths  which  are  found  everywhere  in  various  forms. 
And  just  as  a naturalist  would  refer  any  particular  spe- 
cies to  some  great  type,  so  he  finds  at  once  the  place  for 
any  Christian  doctrine  under  some  great  and  general 
Law.  This  principle,  that  the  natural  precedes  the 
spiritual,  it  will  be  our  business  to  trace  to-day. 

We  will  consider  first,  then,  The  universality  of  this 
Law.  And, 

Secondly,  The  spiritual  instances  given  of  it. 

I.  Its  universality  is  disclosed  in  the  order  of  Cre- 
ation. No  ingenuity  can  reconcile  the  formal  statements 
respecting  the  creation  made  by  Moses  with  those  made 
by  modern  science.  The  story  of  the  Creation  as  told 
by  Moses  is  one  thing,  as  told  by  men  of  science  it  is 
another  thing  altogether.  For  the  Bible  is  not  a scien- 
tific work  ; it  does  not  deal  with  hypotheses,  nor  with 
formal  facts  which  are  of  time,  and  must  nesessarily 
vary,  but  it  declares  Eternal  principles.  It  is  not  a 
revelation  of  the  truths  of  Geology  or  Astronomy,  but 
it  is  a revelation  of  the  Character  of  God  to  us.  And 
yet  the  spiritual  principles  declared  by  Moses  are  pre- 
cisely those  revealed  by  science.  The  first  chapter  of 
Genesis  starts  with  the  doctrine  that  the  heavens  and 
the  earth,  that  liglit  and  darkness,  were  all  created  by 
One  and  the  same  God.  Modern  science,  day  by  day, 
reveals  iriore  clearly  the  unity  of  design  that  pervades 
creation.  A^ain,  in  Moses’  account  nothino*  is  more 
remarkable  than  the  principle  of  gradation  on  which  he 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


239 


tells  us  the  universe  arose.  And  this  is  confirmed  at 
every  step  by  science.  To  this  the  accumulated  strata 
bear  their  witness,  to  this  the  organic  remains  testify 
continually.  Not  that  first  which  is  highest,  but  that 
which  is  lowest : First,  the  formless  earth,  then  the 
green  herb  growing  on  the  sides  of  the  upraised  moun- 
tains, then  the  lowest  forms  of  animal  existence,  then 
the  highest  types,  then  man,  the  last  and  noblest.  And 
then,  perhaps,  an  age  to  come  when  all  shall  be  swept 
away,  to  make  room  for  a higher  and  nobler  race  of  be- 
ings. For  that  is  not  first  which  is  spiritual,  but  that 
which  is  natural.” 

Again  the  universality  of  this  law  is  seen  in  the  pro- 
gress of  the  Jewish  nation. 

We  take  it  as  an  instance  of  this  Law  among  na- 
tions, because  the  Jews  were  confessedly  the  most 
spiritual  of  mankind.  So  vast  is  the  interval  between 
them  and  all  others,  that  the  collected  works  which,  in 
speaking  of  another  people,  would  be  called  a national 
literature,  are  of  them  called  an  inspired  Bible.  The 
Scriptures  stand  separate  from  all  other  books,  unap- 
proachable in  their  spirituality.  Marvellous,  too,  was 
the  combination  in  them  of  the  Asiatic  veneration  — of 
religious  awe  and  contemplation  — with  the  stern  moral 
sense  which  belongs  to  the  more  northern  nations. 
You  will  find  among  Hindoos  a sense  of  the  invisible 
as  strong,  and  among  the  German  family  of  nations  an 
integrity  as  severe,  but  nowhere  will  you  find  the  two 
so  united  as  in  the  history  of  the  chosen  people. 

And  now  having  considered  what  the  Jews  attained 
to,  remember  what  they  rose  from  — recollect  their 
origin.  They  were  a nation  of  slaves.  Originally,  too, 
of  a stock  more  than  commonly  rude,  hard,  and  rugged, 
they  became  in  Egypt  and  in  Palestine  sensual,  idola- 
trous, and  money-loving.  No  history  surpasses  in  hor- 
ror the  cruelty  of  the  wars  of  Canaan.  None  tells  such 
a tale  of  obstinacy,  of  gross  indulgence,  of  minds  appa- 
rently incapable  of  receiving  spiritual  principles.  You 
are  reminded  of  one  of  those  trees,  whose  exposed  roots 
are  seen  gnarled  and  twisted,  hard  as  iron,  more  like 


240 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


rock  than  wood,  and  yet  whose  foliage  above  is  rich 
and  noble : below  extends  the  basis  of  the  coarse  and 
natural,  above  are  manifested  the  beautiful  and  spir- 
itual. 

And  this  was  not  concealed  from  the  Jews.  Their 
prophets  unvaryingly  proclaimed  the  national  character, 
and  described  them  as  the  most  stiff-necked  of  peo- 
ple.” They  were  taught  to  say  at  one  of  their  feasts : 

A Syrian  ready  to  perish  was  my  father.”  They 
were  reminded,  Look  to  the  rock  from  whence  you 
were  hewn,  and  the  hole  of  the  ])it  from  whence  you 
were  digged.’’  For  through  many  progressive  stages 
was  the  great  work  of  their  elevation  wrought ; by  slow 
gradations  did  this  nation  of  slaves  rise  into  being  a 
spiritual  people.  That  was  not  first  which  was  spir- 
itual, but  that  which  was  natural.” 

The  universality  of  this  law  is  shown  again  in  the 
progress  of  the  human  race. 

The  first  man  Adam  was  made  a living  soul,  the 
last  Adam  was  made  a quickening  spirit^  The  first 
man  is  of  the  earth,  earthy : the  second  man  is  the  Lord 
from  heaven.”  Nothing  is  more  common  than  elabo- 
rate delineations  of  the  perfect  state  of  the  first  man. 
If  we  trust  such  descriptions,  Eden  was  perfect  heaven, 
and  Adam  was  furnished  with  all  knowledge  intuitively, 
and  adorned  with . every  grace.  But  when  wq  get 
away  from  poetry  and  picture-painting,,  we  find  that 
men  have  drawn  largely  from  their  imaginations  with- 
out the  warrant  of  one  syllable  of  Scripture  to  corrob- 
orate the  truth  of  the  coloring.  St.  Paul  says  Adam 
was  of  the  earth,  earthy  ; ” and  again,  he  calls  him 

a living  soul.”  Now  recollect  what  soul  (pu'pf) 
meant.  The  adjective  corresponding  to  this  substan- 
tive is  used  in  1 Cor.  ii.  14,  and  is  translated  natural : 

The  natural  man  receiveth  not  the  things  of  the  s])irit 
of  Cod.”  The  natural  man  is  therefore  a man  with  a 
soul,  tlie  spiritual  man  is  the  man  with  a spirit.  Adam 
was  therefore  living  soul,”  that  is,  a natural  man  — 
a man  with  intelligence,  |)erce])ti()n,  and  a moral  sense, 
with  power  to  form  a society  and  to  snbdue  Nature  to 
lhms(‘lf.  He  was  that,  and  that  only. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


241 


The  Fall,  then,  was  only  a necessary  consequence  of 
a state  of  mere  nature.  It  was  a step  downwards  from 
innocence,  but  also  it  was  a step  onwards  — a giant 
step  in  human  progress.  It  made  goodness  possible ; 
for  to  know  the  evil,  and  to  conquer  it  and  choose  the 
good,  is  far  nobler  than  a state  which  only  consists  in 
our  ignorance  of  both.  Until  the  step  of  nature  has 
been  passed,  the  step  of  spirituality  cannot  be  made. 

That  was  not  first  which  was  spiritual,  but  that  which 
was  natural. 

Thus  did  the  Race  begin  to  share  in  the  spiritual ; 
and  among  many  nations,  and  by  means  of  many  men, 
was  the  progress  of  mankind  evolved  ; but  their  light 
was  too  scattered,  and  their  isolated  lives  imparted  little 
life.  So  the  next  stage  in  the  progress  of  the  Race  was 
the  Birth,  and  Life,  and  Death,  and  risen  Glory  of  Him 
who  was  made  a quickening  Spirit.”  Then  it  was 
that  in  the  fulness  of  time  He  was  born,  who  was  the 
blossoming  of  our  Humanity  : differing  from  the  race 
that  had  gone  before,  as  the  flower  differs  from  the  wood 
on  which  it  grows : of  the  same  nature,  and  yet  of 
another,  more  delicate,  and  more  ethereal.  The  natural 
man  had  passed,  the  spiritual  Man  was  come.  The 
spiritual  Man,  whose  prerogative  it  was,  not  as  the  first 
Adam,  to  live  in  Eden  for  himself,  but  as  the  second 
Adam,  to  die  on  Calvary  for  others  ; not  as  the  first 
Adam,  to  receive  happiness ; but  as  the  second  Adam, 
to  confer  life.  It  was  no  longer  the  natural  man,  but 
the  quickening  Spirit,  that  represented  the  race  to  God. 
The  natural  had  risen  into  the  spiritual.  The  first  man 
was  of  the  earth,  earthy ; the  second  man  was  the  Lord 
from  Heaven. 

H.  The  Spiritual  Instances  of  this  Law. 

The  law  which  is  found  to  be  true  of  Nations  and  of 
the  Race,  is  generally  true  of  persons  also ; though  in 
particulars  its  infiuence  may  be  modified  by  individual 
peculiarities.  Generally,  then,  this  law  is  true  of  us  as 
men. 

And,  first,  our  natural  affections  precede  our  spiritual. 

21 


242 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES. 


There  are  two  tables  of  Commandments  : Thou 

shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God,’'  and  Thou  shalt  love 
thy  neiglibor  as  thyself;  ” and  there  are  two  orders  in 
which  they  stand  to  each  other.  In  the  order  of  im- 
portance the  love  of  God  is  first ; in  the  order  of  time 
the  love  of  man  precedes,  tliat  is,  we  begin  by  loving 
Man,  we  do  not  begin  by  loving  God.  Let  us  trace  this 
principle  further.  Love  to  Man  also  begins  lower  down. 
We  do  not  love  our  neighbors  first ; we  do  not  all  at 
once  embrace  the  Race  in  our  affection  ; we  ascend  from 
a lower  point.  Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thy- 
self” — the  Table  given  on  Sinai  does  not  say  that:  it 
only  specifies  one  kind  of  love  — the  love  of  children  to 
parents.  There  are  no  rules  given  there  of  friendship, 
of  patriotism,  or  of  universal  philanthropy ; for  in  the 
Fifth  Commandment  they  all  lie  as  the  future  oak-tree 
lies  in  the  acorn  : the  root  of  all  the  other  developments 
of  love,  is  love  and  honor  unto  parents.  That  injunc- 
tion laid  the  foundation  deep  and  broad.  For  life  de- 
pends greatly  on  the  relations : the  child  is  father  to 

the  man.”  Rarely,  when  the  mother  has  been  all  that 
woman  should  be,  and  the  father  has  been  true  to  the 
protecting  and  guiding,  the  tender  and  strong  instincts 
of  his  manhood,  does  the  child  turn  out  unnatural.  But 
where  there  has  been  a want  of  these  things,  where  any 
one  part  of  the  boy’s  nature  has  remained  uncultivated, 
there  the  subsequent  relationships  will  be  ill  sustained. 
For  the  friend,  the  husband,  the  citizen  are  formed  at 
the  domestic  hearth. 

There  is  yet  one  step  further  : out  of  human  love 
grows  love  to  God.  A miserable  and  sad  mistake  is 
often  made  in  opposition  to  this  fact.  There  are  men 
and  women  of  cold  and  palsied  affections,  who  think  of 
giving  to  God  tlie  love  whicli  h^s  become  cold  to  men. 
Settle  it  in  your  minds,  God  does  not  work  so.  It  is 
quite  true  that  Cliristianity  makes  the  sublime  demand 
on  believers,  If  a man  hate  not  father  and  mother, 
wife,  and  cliildren,  liis  own  life  also,  lie  cannot  be  my 
disci|)le  ; ” but  beibre  that  was  said,  it  had  demanded 
that  we  shoulfl  “ love  our  neighbor  as  ourselves,’’  that 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


243 


we  should  “ honor  our  father  and  mother.”  And  para- 
doxical as  it  may  seem,  you  will  never  attain  to  that  state 
of  love  to  God,  which  can  sacrifice  the  dearest  affections 
rather  than  do  wrong,  until  you  have  cultivated  them  to 
the  highest  possible  degree.  For  it  is  only  by  being 
true  to  all  the  lower  forms  of  love,  that  we  learn  at  last 
that  fidelity  to  the  highest  love,  which  can  sacrifice  them 
all  rather  than  violate  its  sacredness. 

Again,  there  is  another  mistake  made  by  those  who 
demand  the  love  of  God  from  a child.  The  time  does 
come  to  every  child,  as  it  came  to  the  Childhood  of 
Christ,  when  the  love  of  the  earthly  parent  is  felt  to  be 
second  to  the  love  of  the  Heavenly  Father  ; but  this  is 
not  the  firsts  ‘‘  for  that  is  not  first  which  is  spiritual,  but 
that  which  is  natural.”  It  is  true,  there  have  been 
cases  where  children  have  given  striking  proof  of  love  to 
God,  but  these,  even  to  a proverb,  die  young,  because 
they  are  precocious,  unnatural,  forced  ; and  God  never 
forces  character. 

For  a time  the  father  represents  God,  — is  in  the  place 
of  God  to  the  child.  He  is  to  train  the  affections  which 
afterwards  shall  be  given  to  God  ; and  the  brother  those 
which  shall  expand  hereafter  for  Christ.  Like  the  trellis 
round  which  the  tendrils  clasp  till  they  are  fit  to  trans- 
plant, so  are  the  powers  of  love  within  the  child  sup- 
ported and  strengthened  as  he  leans  upon  his  father,  till 
they  are  mature  enough  to  stand  alone  for  God.  And 
you  cannot  reverse  this,  without  great  peril  to  the  child’s 
spiritual  nature.  You  cannot  force  love  to  God.  By 
no  outrageous  leaps,  but  by  slow  walking,  is  the  spiritual 
love  reached. 

Lastly  : The  Moral  precedes  the  Spiritual. 

Let  us  remember  once  more  the  definition  we  have 
given  to  the  word  soul,”  — the  moral  and  intellectual 
qualities  belonging  to  the  man.  And  then  let  us  take 
the  Apostle’s  own  words,  The  first  man  Adam  was 
made  a living  soul,  the  last  Adam  was  made  a quicken- 
ing spirit.”  And  this  is  true  of  all,  for  the  history  of 
the  Jewish  race,  of  the  Human  race,  is  repeated  in  the 
history  of  every  individual.  There  is  a time  when  the 


244 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Adam  is  formed  witliin  ns,  wlien  the  Clirist  begins  to 
be  formed,  when  we  feel  witliin  ns  the  sense  of  Clirist 
in  ns,  the  hope  of  glory,”  wlien  the  living  sonl,”  as 
rnler  of  the  man,  gives  place  to  the  quickening  spirit.” 
Ever  it  is  true  that  the  animal,  the  intellectual,  and  the 
moral  precede  the  spiritnal  life. 

Bnt  there  are  two  stages  through  which  we  pass : 
through  Temptation,  and  through  Sorrow. 

1.  It  Avas  through  temptation  that  the  first  Adam  fell 
from  a state  of  nature.  It  was  through  temptation,  too, 
that  the  second  Adam  redeemed  Humanity  into  a state 
of  grace.  To  the  first  Adam  this  world  was  as  a gar- 
den is  to  a child,  in  which  he  has  nothing  to  do  but  to 
taste  and  enjoy.  Duty  came  with  its  infinite  demands  : 
it  came  into  collision  with  the  finite  appetites,  and  he 
fell.  The  first  state  is  simply  that  of  untempted  inno- 
cence. In  the  temptation  of  the  second  Adam  infinite 
Duty  consecrated  certain  princijiles  of  action  without 
reference  to  consequences:  ^‘Man  shall  not  live  by 
bread  alone : ” Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the  Lord  thy 
God  ; ” Thou  shalt  worship  the  Lord  thy  God,  and 
Him  only  shalt  thou  serve.”  We  pass  into  the  spiritual 
state  when  we  fall.  It  is  not  better  to  do  right : you 
must  do  right.  It  is  not  merely  worse  for  you  to  do 
wrong  — the  law  is.  Thou  shalt  not ! 

2.  Through  Sorrow.  Note  here  the  difference  be- 
tween Adam  and  Christ.  Adam’s  was  a state  of  satis- 
fied happiness,  Christ’s  was  one  of  noble  aspiration  ; 
His  was  a Divine  Sorrow,  there  was  a secret  sadness 
in  the  heart  of  the  Son  of  Man.  There  is  a difference 
between  Childhood  and  Age,  between  Christian  and 
un-Christian  motives.  Out  of  contemplations  such  as 
these  we  collect  a presumption  of  immortality. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


245 


LECTURE  XXXII. 

1 Corinthians,  xvi.  1-9.  — Now  concerning  the  collection  for  the 
saints,  as  I have  given  order  to  the  churches  of  Galatia,  even  so  do 
ye.  — Upon  the  first  day  of  the  week  let  every  one  of  you  lay  by 
him  in  store,  as  God  hath  prospered  him,  that  there  be  no  gather- 
ings when  I come.  — And  when  I come,  whomsoever  ye  shall  ap- 
prove by  your  letters,  them  will  I send  to  bring  your  liberality 
unto  Jerusalem. — And  if  it  be  meet  that  I go  also,  they  shall  go 
with  me.  — Now  I will  come  unto  you,  when  I shall  pass  through 
Macedonia  : for  I do  pass  through  Macedonia.  — And  it  may  be  that 
I will  abide,  yea,  and  winter  with  you,  that  ye  may  bring  me  on  my 
journey  whithersoever  I go.  — For  I will  not  see  you  now  by  the 
way;  but  I trust  to  tarry  a while  with  you,  if  the  Lord  permit.  — 
But  I will  tarry  at  Ephesus  until  Pentecost.  — For  a great  door  and 
effectual  is  opened  unto  me,  and  there  are  many  adversaries.” 

The  whole  of  this  Epistle  is  fragmentary  in  its  char- 
acter ; it  is  not  purely  argumentative,  like  that  to  the 
Romans,  nor  was  it  written  to  meet  any  one  cardinal 
error,  like  the  Epistles  to  the  Galatians  and  Hebrews  ; 
but  it  arose  in  the  settlement  of  a multitude  of  ques- 
tions which  agitated  the  Corinthian  Church.  The  way 
in  which  St.  Paul,  in  this  chapter,  enters  on  new  ground, 
is  very  characteristic  of  the  abrupt  style  of  the  Epistle. 
The  solemn  topic  of  the  Resurrection  is  closed,  and  now 
a subject  of  merely  local  interest  is  introduced.  The 
Apostle  gives  directions,  in  the  first  four  verses,  re- 
specting a certain  charitable  collection  to  be  made  by 
the  Corinthians,  in  conjunction  with  other  Gentile 
Churches,  for  the  poor  at  Jerusalem  and  in  Judasa. 

We  have  here  an  illustration  of  one  peculiar  use  of 
Scripture.  The  event  recorded  here  has  long  since 
past : the  interest  which  hung  around  it  was  merely 
local : the  actors  in  it  have  been  buried  for  many  cen- 
turies : the  temporary  distress  spoken  of  here  was  long 
since  relieved  : even  the  Apostle  himself  has  written 
simply  and  entirely  for  his  own  time.  And  yet  the 
whole  account  is  as  living,  and  fresh,  and  pregnant 


213 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


with  instruction  to  us  to-day,  as  it  was  to  the  Corin- 
thians  of  that  age.  Reflections  crowd  upon  us  while 
pondering  on  the  history.  We  understand  sometliing 
of  what  is  meant  by  Inspiration.  We  watch  tlie  prin- 
ciples which  are  involved  in  the  apostolic  mode  of 
meeting  the  dilemma,  and  we  find  that  that  which  was 
written  for  a Church  at  Corinth,  contains  lessons  for  the 
Church  of  all  ages.  The  particular  occasion  is  past,  but 
the  principles  and  the  truths  remain. 

To-day,  then,  we  investigate  two  points  : 

I.  The  call  for  charity. 

If.  The  principle  of  its  exercise. 

I.  The  call  for  charity. 

We  learn  from  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  the  Epistle 
to  the  Romans,  at  the  twenty-sixth  verse,  the  occasion 
of  this  collection.  It  seems  that  the  Jewish  converts  in 
Jerusalem,  being  excommunicated  and  persecuted,  were 
in  great  distress,  and  that  St.  Paul  summoned  the  Gen- 
tile converts  in  Achaia,  Galatia,  and  at  Rome,  to  alle- 
viate'their  difficulties.  Now  observe,  first,  how  all 
distinctions  of  race  had  melted  away  before  Christian- 
ity. This  was  not  the  first  time  that  collections  had 
been  made  for  Jerusalem.  Josephus  tells  us  that  they 
had  been  sent  by  foreign  Jews  to  keep  up  the  Temple 
at  Jerusalem,  that  is,  money  had  been  contributed  by 
Jews  for  a Jewish  object.  But  here  was  a Jewish  ob- 
ject supported  by  Gentile  subscriptions.  This  was  a 
new  thing  in  the  world. 

The  hard  lines  of  demarcation  were  fading  away  for 
ever,  the  veil  of  Christ’s  Humanity  was  torn  down. 
He  lived  no  longer  as  the  Jew,  He  had  risen  as  the 
Man,  the  Saviour,  not  of  one  people,  but  of  the  world, 
and  in  Him  all  were  one.  Henceforth  there  was  neither 
Jew  nor  Greek,  bond  nor  free,  male  nor  female  : but 
Christ  was  All. 

Observe  again : Galatia  and  Corinth  were  now  in- 
terested in  the  same  object.  It  was  not  merely  Corinth 
united  to  Jerusalem,  or  Galatia  to  Jerusalem,  but  Je- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


247 


rusalem,  Corintli,  and  Galatia  were  linked  by  a com- 
mon object  to  each  other.  You  have  seen  a magnet 
applied  to  a mass  of  iron  filings,  and  watched  the  mul- 
titude of  delicate  points  all  adhering  to  each  other, 
through  the  invisible  influence  which,  sent  throughout 
them  all,  makes  each  in  its  turn  a magnet.  To  scat- 
tered races  and  divided  peoples,  to  separate  castes  and 
ancient  enmities,  Christ  was  the  Magnet  which  united 
all.  His  Spirit  gave  to  all  a common  interest,  and  that 
is  the  closest  bond  of  union.  As  suggested  here,  the 
different  parts  of  Christendom  were  made  to  feel  to- 
gether. Benumbed  and  paralyzed  till  then,  the  frame 
of  Humanity  was  suddenly  made  to  throb  with  a com- 
mon life. 

Now  this  had  been  done  before  in  a way,  by  other 
means,  which  were  less  sacred.  Two  hitherto  have 
principally  been  employed.  War  and  Trade.  In  earlier 
times  the  different  tribes  of  the  Roman  Republic,  even 
those  who  were  opposing  parties  in  the  city,  were  united 
on  the  field  of  battle ; they  felt  they  were  warring  for 
the  same  cause,  and  they  struck  as  one  man  for  their 
altars  and  their  homes.  Later  in  history  we  find  that 
Trade  united  men  by  mutual  interest.  We  will  not 
injure  others,  said  men,  because,  by  so  doing,  we  shall 
injure  ourselves.  And  on  this  principle,  the  great  gath- 
ering of  the  nations  last  year  was  a pledge  of  union. 
It  was  a good  and  great  effort  in  its  way,  but  still  it 
was  only  an  appeal  to  self-interest. 

In  a far  higher,  nobler,  and  finer  way  Christianity 
unites,  first,  to  Christ,  and  then,  through  Christ,  each 
to  the  other.  We  are  bound  up  each  in  each,  not 
through  a common  hatred,  not  throuMi  a common  in- 
terest  even,  but  through  a common  love.  So  it  was 
that  Galatia  and  Corinth  worked  together  for  Jerusa- 
lem, inspired  with  a common  sympathy,  a common 
affection,  and  therefore  the  Galatians  loved  the  Corin- 
thians, and  the  Corinthians  the  Galatians. 

Here,  however,  a remark  suggests  itself.  This  has 
not  been  realized  since,  in  any  degree  adequate  to  the 
first  promise  of  its  youth.  This  binding  together  of 


248 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Corinth,  Rome,  and  Galatia  — what  has  there  been 
like  it  in  after  ages?  One  gleam  of  sunshine,  the 
prophecy  of  a glorious  noon  to  come,  struck  upon  the 
world,  but  the  promise  of  the  day  was  soon  overclouded. 
So,  also,  there  has  been  nothing  equal  to  the  outpouring 
at  Pentecost ; nor  has  a similar  self-forgetfulness  ever 
characterized  the  Church  since,  as  in  that  day  when  all 
things  were  common  ; nor  has  anything  like  the  early 
miracles  arisen  since  among  the  messengers  of  Christ. 
It  would  seem  as  if  God  gave  at  the  outset,  in  that 
large  flood  of  Love  poured  upon  the  Church,  a specimen 
and  foretaste  of  that  which  is  to  be  hereafter.  Just  as 
on  the  Transfiguration  Mount  we  catch  a glimpse  of 
glory,  not  to  be  repeated  or  realized  for  ages,  which  we 
feel  was  given  to  sustain  a travailing  world  through 
days  and  years  of  sickness  and  of  suffering. 

Remark  how  in  God’s  counsels  sorrow  draws  out 
good.  The  Jewish  Christians  suffered  from  poverty 
and  persecution.  Well:  kindly  feelings  awoke  to  life 
at  Corinth  and  at  Rome  : these  were  the  result  of  the 
misery  at  Jerusalem.  Pain  and  Sorrow  are  mysteries. 
Inexplicable  often  is  it,  in  our  life,  why  we  are  afflicted ; 
but  sometimes  the  veil  is  drawn  aside,  and  we  see  the 
reason  clearly.  And  here,  to  the  Church  of  Jerusalem, 
was  not  all  this  rich  result  of  beauty  and  spiritual  good- 
ness cheaply  purchased  ? Remember,  the  sufferers  at 
Jerusalem  could  not  see  the  meaning  of  their  sorrow. 
They  did  not  know  how  many  a Greek  and  Roman 
was  weekly  laying  up  his  store : they  did  not  know 
that  an  Apostle  was  writing  and  contriving  in  their 
behalf.  Tliey  could  not  see  how  through  their  pain 
Galatia,  and  Corinth,  and  Rome  were  drawn  by  cords 
of  love  together.  They  saw  only  their  own  distress, 
they  felt  only  their  own  forlornness. 

Just  in  the  same  way  we  often  suffer,  and  see  no  good 
result  from  it.  But,  assuredly,  we  are  not  suffering  in 
vain  ; some  lesson  has  been  taught ; some  sympathies 
have  been  aroused ; some  consolation  has  been  given. 
That  mysterious  connection  which  links  the  universe 
together  has  brouHit,  or  will  brino;,  ffood  to  others  out 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


249 


of  our  suffering.  Now  here  is  a new  aspect  of  conso- 
lation. Tliat  is  a common  and  trite  view,  though  deep 
in  its  truth,  which  reminds  us  tliat  sulfering  works  out 
for  us  a weiglit  of  glory  — which  tells  how  our  charac- 
ters are  perfected  through  suffering.  There  is  a higher 
Christian  light  to  see  our  pain  in  : it  blesses  others. 
My  brethren,  it  is  a high  lesson  to  be  willing  to  suffer 
for  this  cause  ! This  is  the  blessedness  of  the  Suffering 
of  Christ ; it  is  the  Law  of  the  Cross  ; it  is  the  vicarious 
principle  pervading  Life,  that  voluntarily,  or  involunta- 
rily, we  must  suffer  for  others.  If  others  are  benefited 
involuntarily  by  our  sufferings,  then  we  do  no  more 
than  the  beasts  who  fulfil  the  law  of  their  being  uncon- 
sciously, who  yield  up  their  lives  unwillingly,  and, 
therefore,  are  not  blest  by  it.  But  if  we  are  willing  to 
bear  our  woe,  because  we  know  that  good  will  accrue, 
we  know  not  how,  or  why,  or  when,  to  others,  then  we 
have  indeed  become  partakers  of  Christ’s  Spirit,  and 
learnt  a Godlike  lesson.  To  be  willing  to  bear,  in 
order  to  teach  others ! — to  lose,  in  order  that  others 
may  through  us  nobler  live  ” — that  is  to  know  some- 
thing of  the  blessedness  He  knew. 

Again,  if  this  distress  came  through  persecutions, 
then  there  was  a signal  fulfilment  of  the  promise.  For 
here  relationships  are  representative  only ; they  do  but 
shadow  out  realities.  Our  earthly  relationships  typify 
truer  spiritual  ones.  The  father  after  tlie  flesh  is  often 
not  the  one  to  whom  in  life  we  look  with  the  most  filial 
reverence.  There  is  a Friend  who  sticketh  closer  than 
a brother.  And  so,  in  firm  faith,  we  must  move  through 
life,  nothing  daunting  us.  On  — onwards!  Though 
the  path  be  dark,  we  shall  not  be  left  lonely  — none 
ever  have  been. 

II.  The  principle  of  the  exercise  of  Charity. 

We  will  consider  this  in  its  manner  and  measure : — 

1.  Systematic  in  manner:  — It  was  to  be  on  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  each  one  was  to  lay  by  in  store  as 
God  had  prospered  him.  That  is,  instead  of  waiting 
for  one  stirring  apostolic  appeal,  they  w'ere  to  make 


250 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


charity  the  business  of  their  lives.  Week  by  week  they 
were  to  build  up  a sum  for  St.  Paul  to  send  to  Jerusa- 
lem. This  contribution  slowly,  systematically  gathered, 
was  to  be  a matter  of  principle,  and  not  of  impulse. 
It  is  possible  that  one  burning  sj)eech  of  St.  Paul’s 
might  have  elicited  a larger  sum.  But  St.  Paul  pre- 
ferred the  effects  of  steady  perseverance  to  those  of 
vehement  emotion.  For  impulse  is  often  mere  luxury. 

I do  not  say  that  good  impulses  are  not  to  be  acted  on, 
or  that  warm  emotions  are  to  be  cooled : they  are  given 
to  facilitate  benevolence ; yet  it  is  quite  certain  that 
they  may  cost  very  little.  To  give  largely,  to  strip 
off*  a coat  to  give  to  a shivering  man,  to  open  your 
purse  and  richly  guerdon  a beggar,  may,  after  all,  be 
nothing  more  than  a relief  from  importunity,  or  a 
compact  with  conscience,  or  a compromise  with  lazi- 
ness. 

Now,  on  the  contrary,  this  systematic  plan  of  St. 
Paul’s  costs  something,  and  teaches  something.  It 
teaches,  first,  the  habit  of  a thoughtful  life ; it  reminds 
us  continually  that  there  is  something  which  is  owed  to 
God,  and  therefore  is  not  our  own.  In  this  world  we 
are  recipients,  the  pensioners  of  our  Father;  and  it  is 
well  that,  by  an  outward  system,  we  should  train  our 
inward  spirit  to  the  unforgetful  thought  of  our  debt 
to  Him.  It  is  well  that  we  should  remember  this  — not 
to  wake  our  fear  of  His  austerity,  but  to  kindle  our 
gratitude  in  answer  to  Plis  Love. 

It  teaches,  secondly,  self-denial.  It  gradually  lays 
the  foundation  of  a life  of  Christian  economy  ; not  that 
which  sacrifices  one  pleasure  for  another  : for  this  is  but 
mere  prudence  : but  that  which  abridges  pleasure,  in 
order  that  we  may  be  able  to  give  to  God. 

2.  The  measure  of  liberality  was,  as  God  hath  pros- 
pered him.”  Observe,  St.  Paul  establishes  ^principle 
here,  and  not  a rule.  He  lays  down  no  rabbinical 
maxim  of  one  tenth  or  one  fourth.  He  leaves  the  » 
measure  of  each  man’s  charity  to  his  own  conscience. 
Ask  thyself,  he  says  to  each,  “ How  much  owest  thou 
unto  thy  J^ord  ? ” 


TO  THE  COIIINTHIANS. 


251 


Besides,  a wide  margin  is  here  left  necessarily  for 
variety  of  circumstances.  God  prospers  one  man  in 
fortune  ; another  man  in  time  ; another,  in  talent ; and 
time,  talents,  power  of  government,  knowledge,  keen 
sympathy,  are  often  better  gifts  than  money.  It  is  a 
false  view  which  limits  charity  to  almsgiving.  Silver 
and  gold  have  I none,’’  said  St.  Peter  when  the  lame 
man  asked  an  alms,  but  that  which  I have  I give  unto 
thee  ; ” and  the  man  was  healed.  So  now,  often  the 
greatest  exercise  of  charity  is  where  there  is  nothing 
given^  but  where  the  deserving  are  assisted  to  support 
themselves.  Often  the  highest  charity  is  simply  to  pay 
liberally  for  all  things  had  or  done  for  you  ; because  to 
underpay  workmen,  and  then  be  bountiful,  is  not  char- 
ity. On  the  other  hand,  to  give^  when  by  so  doing  you 
support  idleness,  is  most  pernicious.  No  evil  prevails 
so  much,  or  is  so  sheltered  under  specious  pretexts,  as 
the  support  of  beggars.  Yet  you  cannot  refuse  to  give 
a street-alms  if  your  charity  has  no  other  channel : you 
would  feel  that  refusal  in  such  a case  was  a mere  pre- 
text to  save  your  money.  But  if  your  wealth  is  wisely 
and  systematically  given,  then  the  refusal  of  idle  appeals 
does  no  harm  to  the  heart. 

Now,  the  first  principle  laid  down  by  St.  Paul  will 
explain  why  the  second  is  not  realized.  Men  do  not 
give  as  God  hath  prospered  them,  because  they  do  not 
give  systematically ; that  is,  they  who  have  most  are 
not  they  who  give  most,  but  the  reverse.  It  is  a fact, 
the  more  we  have,  the  less  we  give.  Search  the  annals 
of  all  societies,  and  you  will  find  that  the  large  contribu- 
tions are  given  by  those  whose  incomes  are  hundreds, 
and  not  thousands.  Many  are  the  touching  cases 
known  to  all  clergymen,  where  the  savings  of  a servant, 
a governess,  a workman,  have  more  than  equalled  the 
munificence  of  the  rich.  So,  also,  St.  Paul’s  experience 
was : The  grace  of  God,  he  says,  was  bestowed  on 
the  churches  of  Macedonia;  how  that  in  a great  trial 
of  affliction  the  abundance  of  their  joy  and  their  deep 
poverty  abounded  unto  the  riches  of  their  liberality. 
For  to  their  power  I bear  record,  yea,  and  beyond  their 
power  they  were  willing  of  themselves.” 


LECTUlif:3  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


The  reason  of  this  strange  difference  is,  tliat  system 
is  easier  with  little  than  with  much.  The  man  of  thou- 
sands squanders.  Indulgence  after  indulgence  presents 
itself  to  him  : every  impulse  is  satisfied  immediatelv  : 
he  denies  himself  nothing : he  gives  as  freely  when  he 
is  touched  by  a tale  of  woe,  as  he  indulges  when  he 
wants  indulgence.  But  his  luxuries  and  his  extra  ex- 
penditure grow  into  necessities,  and  he  then  complains 
of  his  larger  liabilities  and  establishment.  Yet,  withal, 
it  would  be  a startling  thing  if  well-meaning  persons, 
who  say  they  cannot  give,  were  only  to  compute  how 
much  annually  is  spent  in  that  mere  waste,  which  the 
slightest  self-denial  would  have  spared. 

Now  let  me  appeal  to  those  who  really  wish,  in  this 
thing,  to  do  right.  It  is  not  my  duty,  from  this  chap- 
ter, to  make  a stirring  appeal  to  your  conscience,  but 
simply  to  assist  with  advice  that  desire  of  liberality 
which  is  already  existing,  but  which  exists  without  ex- 
pedients or  plans  of  action.  St.  Paul’s  principle  is  the 
only  safe  or  true  one.  Systematize  your  charity.  Save, 
by  surrendering  superfluities  first.  Feel  that  there  is 
a sacred  fund,  which  will  be  made  less  by  every  unne- 
cessary expense.  Let  us  learn  Christian  Economy 
first.  Next  we  shall,  by  God’s  grace,  learn  Christian 
Self-denial.  For  the  Corinthians  gave  not  out  of  their 
abundance,  but  out  of  their  deep  poverty. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


253 


LECTURE  XXXIII. 


1 CoKiNTHiAxs,  xvi.  10-24.  — “ Now  if  Timotheus  come,  see  that  he 
may  be  with  you  without  fear  : for  he  worketh  the  work  of  tlie  Lord, 
as  I also  do.  — Let  no  man  therefore  despise  him;  but  conduct  him 
forth  in  peace,  that  he  may  come  unto  me  : fox'  I look  for  him  witli 
the  brethren.  — As  touching  our  brother  Apollos,  I greatly  desired 
him  to  come  unto  you  with  the  brethren  : but  his  will  was  not  at  all 
to  come  at  this  time;  but  he  will  come  when  he  shall  have  convenient 
time.  — Watch  ye,  stand  hist  in  the  hiith,  quit  you  like  men,  be 
strong.  — Let  all  your  things  be  done  with  charity.  — I beseech  you, 
brethren,  (ye  know  the  house  of  ^ tephanas,  that  it  is  the  first-fruits 
of  Achaia,  and  that  they  have  addicted  themselves  to  the  ministry  of 
the  saints.)  — That  ye  submit  yourselves  unto  such,  and  to  eveiy 
one  that  helpeth  with  us,  and  laboreth.  — I am  glad  of  the  coming  of 
Stephanas  and  Fortunatus  and  Achaicus  : for  that  which  was  lacking 
on  your  part  they  have  supplied.  — For  they  have  refreshed  my 
spirit  and  yours  : therefore  acknowledge  ye  them  that  are  such.  — 
The  churches  of  Asia  salute  you.  Aquila  and  Priscilla  salute  you 
much  in  the  Lord,  with  the  church  that  is  in  their  house.  — All  the 
brethren  greet  you.  Greet  ye  one  another  with  an  holy  kiss.  — The 
salutation  of  me  Paul  with  mine  own  hand.  — If  any  man  love  not 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  let  him  be  Anathema  Maran-atha.  — The 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  you.  — My  love  be  with  you 
ail  in  Christ  Jesus.  Amen.” 

To-hay  we  close  our  exposition  of  the  First  Epistle 
to  the  Corinthians  by  gathering  together  the  salutations 
which  are  contained  in  the  conclusion. 

In  going  through  this  Epistle,  we  cannot  fail  to  have 
observed  that  it  is  altogether  frao;mentarv.  This  was 
the  natural  result  of  its  character,  since  it  was  a reply 
to  various  questions  arising  out  of  the  peculiar  state  of 
the  Corinthian  Church.  But  the  conclusion,  as  we 
might  expect,  is  even  more  fragmentary  than  the  rest. 
It  is  simply  made  up  of  certain  information  respecting 
St.  PauPs  movements,  certain  salutations,  certain  per- 
sonal memorials,  and  notices  — and  a brief  reminder  of 
the  First  Principles  interspersed  throughout  the  forego- 
ing chapters.  It  will,  therefore,  be  necessary  for  us  in 


254 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


this  place  to  connect  them  together  as  well  as  we  cnn, 
not  expecting  to  find  any  natural  division  to  facilitate 
the  making  of  a plan,  or  to  assist  the  memory  in  com- 
bining this  scattered  Epistle  into  a whole. 

First,  we  notice  the  information  given  us  respecting 
the  Apostle’s  movements.  Now  we  find  him  telling  the 
Corinthians  that  he  hoped  to  visit  them,  and  to  winter 
with  them,  but  not  yet,  for  he  was  to  stay  at  Ephesus 
until  Pentecost.  I only  mention  this,  in  order  to  call 
attention  to  the  law  of  the  Apostolic  life.  He  remained 
there,  he  says,  for  a great  door  and  effectual  is  opened 
unto  me,  and  there  are  many  adversaries.”  So  it  was 
not  pleasure,  but  duty,  which  kept  him  there.  Ephesus 
was  his  post,  and  at  Ephesus  he  would  stay.  Moreover, 
the  very  circumstance  which  to  many  would  have  been 
an  inducement  to  depart,  was  with  St.  Paul  a strong  one 
to  remain  : there  were  many  adversaries,”  and  he 
was  there  to  take  his  part  in  danger.  Now  in  order  to 
understand  the  true  martyr-spirit,  let  us  compare  his 
behavior  in  the  nineteenth  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles,  at  the  time  of  the  public  uproar,  and  his  own 
strong  expression,  ‘‘  If  after  the  manner  of  men  I have 
fought  with  beasts  at  Ephesus,”  in  the  fifteenth  chapter 
of  this  Epistle,  and  we  shall  see  at  once  that  his  feeling 
was:  There  is  danger  — well,  then,  I will  stay. 

Secondly,  we  make  a remark  respecting  salutations 
generally.  This  Epistle  has  many,  but  they  are  not  so 
numerous  as  in  that  to  the  Romans.  In  both  of  them 
individuals  are  mentioned  by  name.  It  was  no  mere 
general  assurance  of  attachment  he  gave  them,  but  one 
of  his  personal  knowledge  and  affection. 

1.  Remark  that,  with  St.  Paul,  personal  considera- 
tions were  not  lost  in  general  philanthropy  : that  be- 
cause he  entertained  regard  for  the  churches,  and  for 
bodies  of  men,  he  did  not  on  this  account  ignore  the 
individuals  composing  them.  It  is  common  enough  to 
profess  great  interest  and  zeal  for  Ilumanity,  whilst 
there  is  indifference  all  the  time  about  individual  men. 
It  is  (common  enough  to  be  zealous  about  a cause,  about 
some  sclieme  of  social  good,  and  yet  to  be  careless  re- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


255 


specting  individual  welfare.  But  St.  Paul’s  love  was 
from  Christ’s  own  Spirit.  It  was  love  to  the  Church 
generally,  and  besides,  it  was  love  to  Aquila  and  Pris- 
cilla. And,  is  not  this,  too,  the  nature  of  God’s  Love, 
who  provides  for  the  Universe,  and  yet  spends  an  infin- 
ity of  care  on  the  fibre  of  a leaf? 

2.  Remark  also  the  value  of  the  courtesies  of  life. 
There  are  many  minds  which  are  indifferent  to  such 
things,  and  fancy  themselves  above  them.  It  is  a pro- 
found remark  of  Prescott’s,  that  liberty  is  dependent 
upon  forms.”  Did  not  the  slow,  solemn  change  in  the 
English  constitution,  and  our  freedom  from  violent  sub- 
versions, arise  from  the  almost  superstitious  way  in 
which  precedent  has  been  consulted  in  the  manner  of 
every  change.  But  what  is  of  more  importance  to 
remember  is,  that  love  is  dependent  upon  forms  — 
courtesy  of  etiquette  guards  and  protects  courtesy  of 
heart.  How  many  hearts  have  been  lost  irrecoverably, 
and  how  many  averted  eyes  and  cold  looks  have  been 
gained  from  what  seemed  perhaps  but  a trifling  negli- 
gence of  forms  ! 

There  are  three  persons  chiefly  in  reference  to  whom 
these  personal  notices  are  made  — Timothy,  Apollos, 
and  the  household  of  Stephanas. 

I.  In  the  tenth  verse  — If  Timotheus  come,  see  that 
* he  may  be  with  you  without  fear  : for  he  worketh  the 
work  of  the  Lord  as  I also  do  ” — he  bespeaks  respect 
for  him,  official  respect,  and  personal  consideration.  It 
is  chiefly  on  this  personal  consideration  that  I wish  to 
dwell.  Let  him  be  without  fear  — let  no  man  despise 
him.”  Now  consider  the  circumstances  in  whicli  Tim- 
othy was  placed.  He  was  young  in  years,  and  he  was 
a recent  convert  to  Christianity.  He  lived  in  a day 
when  the  Christian  profession  was  despised  and  perse- 
cuted. There  was  much  to  make  him  fear.”  He  — 
a young  teacher  — was  coming  to  a city  where  gifts 
were  unduly  and  idolatrously  reverenced,  and  where 
even  the  authority  of  one  like  St.  Paul  was  liable  to  be 
treated  lightly,  if  he  did  not  possess  the  gifts  and  graces 


25G 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


of  Attic  oratory.  There  must,  therefore,  liave  been 
much  to  make  it  likely  that  lie  would  be  despised. 
Think  how,  without  a friend  like  St.  Paul  to  throw  his 
mantle  oyer  him,  Timothy’s  own  modesty,  would  have 
silenced  him,  and  how  his  young  enthusiasm  might 
have  been  withered  by  ridicule  or  asperity  ! 

In  this  light,  St.  Paul’s  pleading  is  an  encouragement 
of  goodness  while  yet  in  its  tender  bud.  From  this 
instance  we  are  enabled  to  draw  a lesson  for  all  ages. 
There  is  a danger  of  our  paralyzing  young  enthusiasm 
by  coldness,  by  severity,  by  sneers,  by  want  of  sympa- 
thy. There  are  few  periods  in  life  more  critical  than 
that  in  which  sensibilities  and  strong  feeling  begin  to 
develop  themselves  in  young  people.  The  question  is 
about  to  be  decided  whether  what  is  at  present  merely 
romantic  feeling  is  to  become  generous  devotion,  and  to 
end  by  maturing  into  self-denial,  or  whether  it  is  to  re- 
main only  a sickly  sentiment,  and,  by  reaction,  degen- 
erate into  a bitter  and  a sneering  tone.  And  there  are, 
perhaps,  few  countries  in  which  this  danger  is  so  great, 
and  so  much  to  be  guarded  against,  as  here  in  England. 
Nowhere  is  feeling  met  with  so  little  sympathy  as  here 
— nowhere  is  enthusiasm  so  much  kept  down  — no- 
where do  young  persons  learn  so  soon  the  fashionable 
tone  of  strongly  admiring  nothing  — wondering  at 
nothing  — reverencing  nothing  — and  nowhere  does  a 
young  man  so  easily  fall  into  the  habit  of  laughing  at 
his  own  best  and  purest  feelings.  And  this  was  a dan- 
ger which  the  Apostle  Paul  knew  well,  and  could  not 
overlook,  lie  foresaw  the  risk  of  paralyzing  that  young 
and  beautiful  enthusiasm  of  Timothy  by  the  party-spirit 
of  Corinth,  by  the  fear  of  the  world’s  laugh,  or  by  the 
recoil  with  which  a young  man,  dreading  to  be  despised, 
hides  Avhat  is  best  and  noblest  in  himself,  and  conse- 
(juently  becomes  hard  and  commonplace.  In  earlier 
clays,  A poll  os  himself  ran  the  same  risk.  He  set  out 
jireaching  all  the  truth  that  he  knew  enthusiastically. 
It  wns  very  poor  truth,  lamentably  incomplete,  embrac- 
ing only  dolin’s  baptism,  that  is,  the  doctrine  which 
rJohn  tang  lit.  lliultl  le  Christians  met  him  with  sneers, 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


257 


had  they  said,  This  young  upstart  does  not  preach 
the  Gospel,”  there  had  been  either  a great  teacher 
blighted,  or  else  a strong  mind  embittered  into  defiance 
and  heresy.  • But  from  this  he  was  delivered  by  the 
love  and  prudence  of  Aquila  and  Priscilla,  who,  we 
read,  ‘‘  took  him  unto  them,  and  expounded  unto  him 
the  way  of  God  more  perfectly.”  They  made  allow- 
ances : they  did  not  laugh  at  his  imperfections,  nor 
damp  his  enthusiasm  : they  united  him  with  themselves  : 
they  strengthened  what  was  weak  — they  lopped  away 
what  was  luxuriant : they  directed  rightly  what  was 
energetic.  Happy  the  man  who  has  been  true  to  the 
ideal  of  his  youth,  and  has  been  strong  enough  to  work 
out  in  real  life  the  plan  which  pleased  his  childish 
thought ! Happy  he  who  is  not  ashamed  of  his  first 
enthusiasm,  but  looks  back  to  it  with  natural  piety,  as 
to  the  parent  of  what  he  now  is  ! But  for  one  of  whom 
this  is  true  — how  many  are  there  whom  the  experience 
of  life  has  soured  and  rendered  commonplace  ! How 
many,  who  were  once  touched  by  the  sunlight  of  Hope, 
have  grown  cold,  settled  down  into  selfishness,  or  have 
become  mere  domestic  men,  stifled  in  wealth  or  lost  in 
pleasure  ! 

Above  all  things,  therefore,  let  us  beware  of  that 
cold,  supercilious  tone,  which  blights  what  is  generous, 
and  affects  to  disbelieve  all  that  is  disinterested  and  un- 
worldly. Let  us  guard  against  the  esprit  moqiieur  — 
the  Mephistopheles  spirit,  which  loves  and  reverences 
nothing. 

II.  As  touching  our  brother  Apollos,  I greatly 
desired  him  to  come  unto  you  with  the  brethren : 
but  his  will  was  not  at  all  to  come  at  this  time  ; but 
he  will  come  when  he  shall  have  convenient  time.” 
Upon  this  I will  make  two  remarks  : 

1.  The  perfect  absence  of  all  mean  jealousy  in  St. 
Paul’s  mind.  Compare  this  passage  with  his  earnest 
rebuke  of  the  party  of  Apollos  in  the  first  chapter.  On 
reading  that,  it  might  appear  natural  to  say,  Oh,  he 
cannot  bear  a rival ! ” But,  behold,  it  was  zeal  for 
22* 


258 


LIX'TURES  ON  TIIK  EPISTLES 


Christ,  and  not  jealousy  of  Apollos.  With  Apollos  he 
felt  only  hearty  fellowsliip,  for  he  greatly  desired  him 
to  come  to  them  with  the  brethren.’’  Tliese  are  some 
of  the  fine  touches  by  which  we  learn  Avliat  that  sub- 
lime Apostle  was,  and  what  the  grace  of  God  liad  made 
him.  Here,  ai^ain,  we  see  another  advantacre  of  our 
expository  course,  enabling  us  to  trace  and  note  down 
many  delicate  touches  of  character  that  might  other- 
wise easily  be  passed  over. 

2.  Let  us  pause  to  admire  the  Apostle’s  earnest  de- 
sire to  make  Apollos  stand  well  with  the  Corinthians. 
A meaner  spirit,  feeling  that  Apollos  was  a dangerous 
rival,  would  either  have  left  his  conduct  unexplained, 
or  would  have  caught  at,  and  been  even  glad  of  the 
suspicion  resting  on  him  ; why  did  he  stay  away  ? But 
St.  Paul  Avould  leave  no  misunderstanding  to  smoulder. 
He  simply  stated  that  Apollos  had  reasons  for  not 
coming:  ^‘but  he  will  come.”  This  is  magnanimity 
and  true  delicacy  of  heart. 

HI.  The  house  of  Stephanas  : Ye  know  the  house 
of  Stephanas,  that  it  is  the  first-fruits  of  Achaia,  and 
that  they  have  addicted  themselves  to  the  ministry  of 
the  saints.”  St.  Paul  tells  them  in  the  next  verse,  to 
submit  themselves  unto  such”  — to  respect  them. 
See,  then,  what  Christianity  is  — Equality  : yes,  but 
not  levelling.  God’s  universe  is  built  on  subordination  : 
so  is  God’s  Church.  The  spirit  of  the  world’s  liberty 
says,  Let  no  man  lord  it  over  you  ; ” but  the  spirit  of 
tlie  Gospel  liberty  says,  Submit  yourselves  one  to 
another.”  Observe,  however,  another  thing : they 
had  addicted  themselves  to  the  ministry.  Who  had 
called  them  to  it  ? No  one,  exce})t  God  by  an  inward 
fitness.  Yet,  knowing  this,  St.  Paul  says,  Submit 
yourselves.”  There  are  certain  things  to  be  done  in 
this  world  which  require  ])eculiar  instruments  and  pecu- 
liar (|ualiH(*ations.  A call  from  God  to  do  such  a work 
is  oft(m  shown  by  a willingness  to  do  it : a readiness  to 
stand  Ibrward  and  take  the  lead.  When  this  is  the 
case,  and  such  men  try  to  do  good,  they  are  often  met 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


259 


with  innumerable  hindrances.  Take  as  instances,  How- 
ard and  Mrs.  Fry,  who  encountered  nothing  hut  diffi- 
culties ; they  were  thwarted  in  all  they  undertook,  and 
hindered  on  every  side. 

Now,  St.  Paul  says  this  is  wrong  ; you  ought  rather 
to  help  such.  Let  them  take  the  lead  — follow  in 
their  wake,  and  do  not  mar  the  work  by  any  petty 
jealousy.  Submit  yourselves  rather  unto  such,  and 
to  every  one  that  helpeth  with  us  and  laboreth.’’  Ob- 
serve, then,  it  is  as  much  an  apostolic  duty  to  obey 
persons  who  have  addicted  themselves  ” from  inward 
fitness,  as  it  is  to  respect  an  outward  constitutional  au- 
thority. 

Lastly,  the  Epistle  concludes  with  the  repetition  of  a 
few  First  Principles.  As  the  postscript  often  contains 
the  gist  of  a letter  — the  last  earnest  thought,  the  re- 
sult of  a strong  effort  at  recollection  in  order  to  leave 
nothing  important  unsaid  — so  we  may  here  expect  to 
find  gathered  to  a point  some  of  the  essential  princi- 
ples of  Christianity  as  a parting  request. 

Accordingly,  we  find  the  Apostle,  in  the  thirteenth 
verse,  saying,  Watch  ye,  stand  fast  in  the  faith,  quit 
you  like  men,  be  strong,’’  — by  which  he  enforces  the 
duty  of  Manliness.  In  the  fourteenth  verse,  Let 
all  your  things  be  done  with  charity.”  The  Apostle’s 
incessant  exhortation  to  Love,  is  again  pressed  upon 
them  in  the  most  comprehensive  form.  And  in  the 
twenty-second  verse,  If  any  man  love  not  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  let  him  be  Anathema  Maran-atha.”  By 
which  the  rule  of  sympathy,  and  that  of  antipathy,  is 
pointed  out.  Respecting  the  first  of  these,  I address 
young  men  — 

If  you  think  Christianity  a feeble,  soft  thing,  ill 
adapted  to  call  out  the  manlier  features  of  character, 
read  here,  Quit  you  like  men.”  Remember,  too, 
He  that  ruleth  his  spirit,  is  greater  than  he  that  taketh 
a city.”  He  who  conquers  passion  in  its  might  is  every  • 
inch  a man  ! Say  what  you  will,  the  Christian  con- 
queror is  the  only  one  who  deserves  the  name. 


260 


I-ECTUIIKS  ON  THE  EPI.STEKS 


LECTURE  X XXI V. 

July  11,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  i.  1-14.  — “ Paul,  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ  by  the 
will  of  God,  and  Timothy  our  brother,  unto  the  church  of  God  which 
is  at  Corinth,  with  all  the  saints  which  are  in  all  Achaia  : — Grace 
be  to  you  and  peace  from  God  our  Father,  and  from  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  — Blessed  be  God,  even  the  Fatlier  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
the  Father  of  mercies,  and  the  God  of  all  comfort;  — Who  comfoi'tcth 
us  in  all  our  tribulation,  that  we  may  be  able  to  comfort  them  which 
are  in  any  trouble  by  the  comfort,  whei  ewitli  we  ourselves  are  com- 
forted of  God.  — For  as  the  sufferings  of  Christ  abound  in  us,  so  our 
consolation  also  aboundetli  by  Christ.  — And  whether  we  be  afflicted, 
it  is  for  your  consolation  and  salvation,  which  is  effectual  in  the  en- 
during of  the  same  sufferings  which  we  also  suffer  : or  whether  we 
be  comforted,  it  is  for  your  consolation  and  salvation.  — And  our 
hope  of  you  is  steadfast,  knowing,  that  as  ye  are  partakers  of  the  suf- 
ferings, so  shall  ye  be  also  of  the  consolation.  — For  we  would  not, 
brethren,  have  you  ignorant  of  our  trouble  which  came  to  us  in  Asia, 
that  we  were  pressed  out  of  measure,  above  strength,  insomuch  that 
we  despaired  even  of  life  : — But  we  had  the  sentence  of  death  in 
ourselves,  that  we  should  not  trust  in  ourselves,  but  in  God  which 
raiseth  the  dead  : — Who  delivereth  us  from  so  great  a death,  and 
doth  deliver:  in  whom  we  trust  that  he  will  yet  deliver  us;  — Ye 
also  helping  together  by  prayer  for  us,  that  for  the  gift  bestowed 
upon  us  by  the  means  of  many  persons,  thanks  may  be  given  by 
many  on  our  behalf.  — For  our  rejoicing  is  this,  the  testimony  of 
our  conscience,  that  in  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,  not  with 
fleshly  wisdom,  but  by  the  grace  of  God,  we  have  had  our  conversa- 
tion in  the  world,  and  more  abundantly  to  you-ward.  — For  we 
write  none  other  things  unto  you,  than  what  ye  read  or  acknowledge; 
and  I trust  ye  shall  acknowledge  even  to  the  end;  — As  also  ye 
have  acknowledged  us  in  part,  that  we  are  your  rejoicing,  even  as 
ye  also  arc  ours  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.” 


The  cluiracter  of  tlie  Second  Epistle  to  the  Corin- 
thians differs  considerably  from  that  of  the  First.  In 
tlie  foi'iner  E])istle5  a variety  of  separate  questions  are 
discussed;  some  relating  to  doctrine  — for  example,  the 
Jt(isurrection  : others  to  moral  conduct,  as  concerning 
the  incestuous  Corinthian  ; others  res])ecting  ceremo- 
nies; others  of  casuistry,  as  the  eating  of  meats  offered 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


261 


to  idols ; and  others  regarding  order  in  the  Church,  as, 
for  example,  the  investigation  of  the  value  of  spiritual 
gifts.  To  all  these  St.  Paul  replies,  by  referring  each 
particular  question  back  to  some  broad  principle  of 
Christianity. 

But  in  the  second  Epistle  a more  personal  tone  is 
observable.  It  seems  that  certain  charges  had  been 
alleged  against  him,  probably  in  consequence  of  the 
severe  and  uncompromising  way  in  which  he  had  blamed 
their  divisions  and  their  sectarian  spirit ; and  now,  in- 
stead of  being  blamed  by  one  party,  he  found  himself 
accused  by  all.  They  had  charged  him  with  harshness 
to  the  incestuous  person,  with  fickleness,  with  arrogance 
in  his  ministry ; they  said  he  had  assumed  a tone  of  au- 
thority which  ill  became  him,  and  which  was  not  con- 
sistent with  the  insignificance  of  his  personal  appearance. 
Accordingly,  we  notice  that  a very  peculiar  tone  pervades 
this  Epistle.  It  is  the  language  of  injured,  and  yet 
most  affectionate,  expostulation.  One  by  one  he  refutes 
all  the  charges  ; one  by  one  he  calmly  sets  them  aside  : 
and  yet  you  cannot  read  the  Epistle  without  perceiving 
that,  with  all  the  firm  manliness  of  his  character,  he 
had  been  wounded  to  the  very  quick.  But  not  one 
word  of  resentment  falls  from  his  pen,  only  once  or 
twice  sentences  of  affectionate  bitterness,  as,  for  exam- 
ple : For  what  is  it  wherein  you  were  inferior  to  other 
churches,  except  it  be  that  I myself  was  not  burden- 
some to  you  ? forgive  me  this  wrong.” 

Our  exposition  to-day  will  embrace  the  first  fourteen 
verses  ; and  these  divide  themselves  generally  into  two 
subjects  of  consideration. 

I.  The  consolations  of  Affliction. 

II.  The  testimony  of  Conscience. 

I.  Now  the  very  terms  of  this  division  show  the  per- 
sonal tone  of  the  Epistle.  His  own  afflictions,  his  own 
conscience  — these  are  the  subjects.  We  shall  see  the 
difference  we  spoke  of  by  comparing  these  verses  with 
the  fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  verses  of  the  first  chapter  of 


262 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


the  First  Epistle.  There  he  thanks  God  for  their  grace, 
their  gifts,  the  testiiiiiony  of  Christ  in  them  ; wliile  here 
we  evidently  feel  the  heart  of  the  Apostle  himself  smart- 
ing under  the  sense  of  injustice  and  misconception  — 
the  want  of  fair  treatment  and  of  sympathy.  Very 
naturally,  therefore,  he  turns  to  the  consolations  of 
Suffering,  and  what  Suffering  means.  It  is  the  great 
question  of  thoughtful  spirits,  not  merely,  How  can 
affliction  he  got  rid  of  as  soon  as  possible  ? — but,  rather, 
Why  is  it  ? what  does  it  mean  ? This  is  the  subject 
of  the  wondrous  Book  of  Job  : from  this  are  born  the 
first  earnest  questionings  of  religion  in  all  hearts,  and 
in  all  ages.  The  Apostle  then  represents  Affliction  — 

1.  As  a school  of  comfort,  v.  4,  5. 

2.  As  a school  of  assurance,  v.  10. 

3.  And  as  a school  of  sympathy,  v.  4. 

1.  As  a school  of  comfort. 

Affliction  and  comfort  — a remarkable  connection  of 
two  apparent  opposites,  and  yet  how  indissoluble  ! For 
heavenly  comfort  — heavenly,  as  distinguished  from 
mere  earthly  gladness  and  earthly  happiness  — is  in- 
separable from  suffering.  It  was  so  in  the  Life  of 
Christ ; it  was  immediately  after  the  temptation  that 
angels  came  and  ministered  to  Him  : it  was  in  His 
agony  that  the  angel  appeared  from  heaven  strengthen- 
ing Him  : it  was  in  the  preparation  for  the  Cross  that 
the  Voice  was  heard,  I have  both  glorified  it,  and  will 
glorify  it  again  ; ” and  it  was  on  the  Cross  that  the 
depth  of  Human  loneliness,  and  the  exceeding  bitter 
cry,  were  changed  for  the  trustful  calm  of  a Spirit  ful- 
filied  with  His  Father’s  love  : Father,  into  thy  hands 
I commend  my  spirit.”  And  as  in  His*life,  so  it  is  in 
ours,  these  two  are  never  separated,  for  the  first  earnest 
questions  of  personal  and  decj)  religion  are  ever  born  out 
of  jxirsonal  suttering.  As  if  God  had  said  : In  the 
siinsliine  thou  canst  not  see  Me;  but  when  the  sun  is 
withdrawn  the  stars  of  heaven  shall  aj)})ear.”  As  with 
Job  : ‘‘Not  in  prosperity,  but  in  the  whirlwind  will  I 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


263 


answer  thee  ; there  thou  shalt  hear  my  Voice,  and  see 
my  Form,  and  know  that  thy  Redeemer  liveth.’’ 

2.  A school  of  assurance. 

There  is  nothing  so  hard  to  force  upon  the  soul  as 
the  conviction  that  life  is  a real,  earnest,  awful  thing. 
Only  see  the  butterfly-life  of  pleasure  men  and  women 
are  living  day  by  day,  hour  by  hour,  flitting  from  one 
enjoyment  to  another ; living,  working,  spending,  and 
exhausting  themselves  for  nothing  else  but  the  seen,  and 
temporal,  and  unreal.  And  yet  these  are  undying 
souls,  with  feelings  and  faculties  which  death  cannot 
rob  them  of ; their  chance  swiftly  passing,  and  no  second 
chance  forever!  Now  pain  and  sorrow  force  upon  the 
spirit  the  feeling  of  reality. 

And  again  : nothing  is  harder  than  to  believe  in  God. 
To  do  just  this  — simpl}^  to  believe  in  God  — in  the 
history  of  each  individual  soul,  there  is  no  page  so  dif- 
ficult to  learn  as  that.  When  you  are  well,  when 
hours  are  pleasant  and  friends  abundant,  it  is  an  easy 
thing  to  speculate  about  God,  to  argue  about  the 
Trinity,  to  discuss  the  Atonement,  to  measure  the 
mysteries  of  Existence.  Christian  men  I when  sorrow 
comes,  speculation  will  not  do.  It  is  like  casting  the 
lead  from  mere  curiosity,  when  you  have  a sound, 
strong  ship  in  deep  water.  But  when  she  is  grinding 
on  the  rocks  I Oh  ! we  sound  for  God  when  the  soul 
is  on  the  rocks.  For  God  becomes  a living  God,  a 
Reality,  a Home,  when  once  we  feel  that  we  are  help- 
less and  homeless  in  this  world  without  Him. 

3.  A school  of  sympathy. 

There  are  some  who  are  Christians,  but  notwith- 
standing are  rough,  hard,  and  rude : you  cannot  go  to 
them  for  sympathy.  You  cannot  confide  the  more 
delicate  difficulties  of  the  soul  to  them.  Theirs  is  that 
rude  health,  which  knows  not  of  infirmities  : theirs  Is 
that  strono;  sound  sense,  which  cannot  see  how  a doubt 
can  enter  the  spirit,  and  make  it  dark  ; nay,  cannot 
understand  why  there  should  be  a doubt  at  all.  They 
have  not  suffered.  But  tenderness  is  got  by  suffering, 
both  physical  and  mental.  This  was  Christ’s  own 


231 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


qualification  for  wsyinpathy  : We  have  not  an  hi;^h 
priest  which  cannot  be  touched  with  tlie  feeling  of  our 
infirmities,  but  was  in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we 
are.”  So  that,  would  you  be  a Ihirnabas?  would  you 
give  something  beyond  commonplace  consolation  to  a 
wounded  spirit  ? would  you  minister  to  doubt,  to  dis- 
appointed affection,  to  the  loneliness  of  life?  — then 
you  must  suffer  being  tempted.”  Now,  here  we  have 
a very  peculiar  source  of  consolation  in  suffering.  It 
is  the  same  which  we  spoke  of  in  the  First  Epistle, 
when  the  subject  of  the  contribution  for  the  poor  of 
Jerusalem  came  before  us.  Their  suffering  had  taught 
many  lessons  to  the  Christians  of  Corinth  and  Galatia, 
had  linked  the  Gentile  Churches  together  in  a common 
cause,  had  unconsciously  drawn  out  sympathy  and  self- 
denial,  and  had  kindled  into  a living  flame  the  apostol- 
ical energies  of  St.  Paul.  So  here  : the  thought  that 
the  Apostle’s  suffering  benefited  others,  soothed  him  in 
his  afflictions  ; and  this  is  quite  a peculiar  consolation  — • 
one,  too,  which  is  essentially  Christian.  Thus  we  see, 
that  Christianity  is  the  true  philosophy,  after  all.  Con- 
sider only  how  moralists,  how  the  old  Stoicism  had 
groped  about  in  the  dark  to  solve  the  mystery  of  pain 
and  grief ; telling  you  it  must  be,  that  it  is  the  common 
lot,  and,  therefore,  to  be  borne  ; that  it  benefits  and 
perfects  you. 

Yes,  that  is  true  enough.  But  Christianity  says 
much  more  to  you : it  says.  Your  suffering  blesses 
others  : it  teaches  you  sympathy  ; it  gives  them  firm- 
ness, and  example,  and  reminds  them  of  their  frailty. 
How  high  a truth!  for  here  is  the  law  of  the  Cross: 

No  man  dieth  to  himself;”  for  his  pain  and  loss  is 
for  others,  and  unconsciously  to  himself  brings  with  it 
to  others,  joy  and  gain. 

If.  The  testimony  of  conscience. 

Met  by  these  charges  from  his  enemies,  and  even 
from  his  friends,  the  A|)ostle  falls  back  on  his  own 
conscicmce.  Let  us  ex[)lain  what  he  means  by  the 
t(‘.:stimony  of  conscience.  He  c(‘rtainly  does  not  mean 


TO  THE  COKIKTHIANS. 


265 


faultlessness  ; for  lie  says,  Of  sinners  I am  chief.” 
And  St.  John,  in  a similar  spirit,  declares  that  none 
can  boast  of  faultlessness : If  we  say  that  we  have  no 
sin,  we  deceive  ourselves.”  And  here  St.  Paul  is  not 
speaking  of  his  own  personal  character,  but  of  his 
ministry  : and,  again,  he  is  not  speaking  of  the  blame- 
lessness of  his  ministry,  but  of  its  success.  No:  it 
was  not  faultlessness  St.  Paul  meant  by  the  testimony 
of  conscience,  but  this  — integrity,  moral  earnestness 
in  his  work ; he  had  been  straightforward  in  his  minis- 
try, and  his  worst  enemies  could  be  refuted,  if  they 
said  that  he  was  insincere. 

1.  Now  this  sincerity  excluded,  first,  all  subtle  ma- 
noeuvring, all  indirect  modes  of  teaching.  The  Corin- 
thians said,  he  had  caught  them  with  guile.  He  said, 
he  had  not : there  had  been  no  concealment  of  views, 
no  doctrine  of  reserve,  no  Jesuitry,  nor  subtlety  of 
reasoning  in  all  his  teaching : his  conscience  told  him 
that.  Yet  many  would  have  thought  this  subtlety  the 
best  mode  of  dealing  with  the  bigoted  Jews,  and  the 
intricate  and  versatile  Greek  intellect.  St.  Paul  might 
have  said  : “ These  views  about  the  Sabbath  will  oft’end 
the  Jews  ; these  declarations  of  the  Christ  crucified 
will  be  unpleasant  to  the  Greeks.”  Instead  of  which, 
in  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity,  St.  Paul  preached 
the  Cross.  And  in  this,  let  men  say  what  they  please, 
the  Apostle  was  true  to  the  nature  of  men.  One  of 
the  keenest  of  Eastern  diplomatists  has  left  it  on  record, 
that  subtlety  fails  in  India ; that  there  manoeuvring 
politicians  have  ever  been  those  who  were  most  easily 
outwitted.  For  none  succeed  like  the  straightforward, 
blunt,  simple  Englishman,  sailor  or  soldier,  as  long  as 
he  is  simple.  Be  sure  that  straightforwardness  is  more 
than  a match  at  last  for  all  the  involved  windings  of 
deceit.  In  your  daily  life,  do  what  you  feel  right,  say 
what  you  feel  true,  and  leave,  with  faith  and  boldness, 
the  consequences  to  God.  Force  men  to  feel  of  you. 

Yes,  he  has  faults,  but  they  lie  on  the  surface  ; he 
may  be  impetuous,  hasty,  mistaken,  but  what  he  says 
23 


206 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTT-ES 


he  thinks : there  is  no  arriere  pemee^  no  acting  in  his 
character  with  a view  to  personal  interests.” 

2.  St.  Paul’s  sincerity  excluded  all  teaching  upon 
the  ground  of  mere  authority.  It  is  commonly  taught 
that  this  or  that  truth  is  to  be  believed,  because  an 
inspired  Apostle  taught  it.  It  is  often  said,  It  is  in- 
credible, nevertheless  you  must  believe  it,  because  it 
was  accredited  by  miracles.  But  the  Apostle  never 
taught  on  this  ground.  Nay,  even  Christ  Himself,  in 
all  His  ministry,  did  not  teach  any  doctrine  on  the 
ground  of  authority.  He  simply  said  : If  I say  the 
truth,  why  do  ye  not  believe?”  ‘‘They  that  are  of 
the  truth,  hear  my  voice  : ” “ Wisdom  is  justified  of 
her  children.”  In  the  same  way  spoke  St.  Paul.  The 
truth  he  had  taught  commended  itself  to  their  con- 
sciences : and  so,  too,  throughout  all  his  instruction,  he 
says,  “ If  our  Gospel  be  hid,  it  is  hid  to  them  that 
are  lost.”  And  again:  “ We  use  great  plainness  of 
speech.” 

This  was  the  secret  of  the  Apostle’s  wondrous  power. 
It  was  because  he  had  used  no  adroitness  nor  craft,  nor 
any  threat  of  authority,  but  stood  simply  on  the  Truth, 
evident,  like  the  sunlight,  to  all  who  had  eyes  to  see, 
that  thousands,  go  where  he  would,  “ acknowledged  ” 
what  he  taught.  There  are  some  men  who  thus  inter- 
pret us  to  ourselves,  who  make  us  more  really  ourselves, 
from  whose  writings  and  words  we  feel  a flash  which 
kindles  all  into  light  at  once.  Of  the  words  of  such 
men  we  do  not  say,  “ How  can  that  be  proved  ?”  We 
say,  “ It  is  the  truth  of  God,  and  needs  no  proof.” 
And  such  is  our  feeling,  as  we  read  the  Word  of  In- 
spiration. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


26T 


LECTURE  XXXV. 

July  18,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  i.  15-  22.  — “ And  in  this  confidence  I was  minded  to 
come  unto  you  before,  that  ye  might  have  a second  benefit;  — And 
to  pass  by  you  into  Macedonia,  and  to  come  again  out  of  Macedonia 
unto  you,  and  of  you  to  be  brought  on  my  way  toward  Judaea.  — 
When  I therefore  was  thus  minded,  did  I use  lightness  ? or  the 
things  that  I purpose,  do  I purpose  according  to  the  flesh,  that  with 
me  there  should  be  yea  yea,  and  nay  nay?  — But  as  God  is  true,  our 
word  toward  you  was  not  yea  and  nay.  — For  the  Son  of  God,  Jesus 
Christ,  who  was  preached  among  you  by  us,  even  by  me  and  Silva- 
nus  and  Timotheus,  was  not  yea  and  nay,  but  in  him  was  yea.  — 
For  all  the  promises  of  God  in  him  are  yea,  and  in  him  Amen,  unto 
t.he  glory  of  God  by  us.  — Now  he  which  stablisheth  us  with  you  in 
Christ,  and  hath  anointed  us,  is  God; — Who  hath  also  sealed  us, 
and  given  the  earnest  of  the  Spirit  in  our  hearts.” 


The  whole  tone  of  this  Epistle  is  apologetical  — - it 
is  defensive  throughout.  In  other  Epistles,  the  main 
subject  being  some  Christian  truth  or  truths,  it  is  only 
incidentally  that  we  ever  learn  anything  respecting  St. 
Paul  himself.  But  in  this,  the  main  subject  is  St.  Paul 
and  St.  Paul’s  conduct ; and  yet  from  chapter  to  chap- 
ter he  digresses  from  his  own  conduct  to  some  great 
principle  which  was  dearer  far  to  him  than  himself.  Of 
course,  generally,  the  value  of  this  Epistle  is  extremely 
great.  But  its  special  value  consists  in  two  things  : — 
1.  It  exhibits  the  way  in  which  a Christian  may 
defend  himself  when  maligned  or  misrepresented.  No 
doubt  it  is  very  true  that,  in  the  end,  character  will 
clear  itself : and  a popular  phrase  says,  with  some  truth, 
that  the  character  which  cannot  defend  itself,  is  best  left 
without  defence.  Yet  this  may  be  pressed  too  far.  An 
uncontradicted  slander  is  believed  readily,  and  often 
for  long  ; and,  meanwhile,  influence  is  crippled  or  lost. 
Conceive  what  might  have  ensued,  had  St.  Paul  not 
met  the  slanders  against  his  character  with  denial  at 


268 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTJ.ES 


once  ! For  few  persons  take  the  trouble  to  sift  a charge 
which  is  not  denied.  Now,  in  the  exposition  of  this 
Epistle,  onr  attention  (inter  alia^  will  be  frequently 
directed  to  the  tone  and  manner  in  which  the  inspired 
Apos tl e* defen ds  himself. 

2.  This  Epistle  is  valuable  as  peculiarly  forcing  our 
attention  to  the  fact  of  the  humility  of  St.  Paul.  In 
remembering  the  inspiration  of  the  Apostles,  we  some- 
times forget  that  they  felt,  thought,  and  wrote  as  men 
— that  the  Holy  Ghost  spoke  through  them,  mixing 
the  Divine  with  the  human  — that  inspiration  flowed 
through  roused  human  feelings  and  passions.  Hence 
there  is  a peculiar  value  in  an  Epistle  whose  main 
character  is  personal. 

The  link  of  connection  between  the  subject  of  last 
Sunday  and  that  of  to-day  is  to  be  found  in  the  twelfth 
and  thirteenth  verses,  in  which  the  Apostle  maintains 
the  openness  and  straightforwardness  of  his  ministry. 
He  had  concealed  nothing,  he  had  used  no  reserve  or 
duplicity.  Nor  had  he  taught  truth  to  them  on  the 
mere  ground  of  authority,  but  as  truth,  — that  which 
was  clear  and  self-evident  when  declared  ; that  which 
they  received  and  acknowledged. 

Next  he  comes  to  a particular  defence  against  a 
charge  of  failure  of  promise.  The  charge  against  him 
was  one  of  duplicity  or  double-dealing,  and  this  both 
in  his  public  teaching,  and  also  in  his  personal  inter- 
course. His  defence  on  the  first  count  of  the  charge 
we  liave  already  dealt  with.  We  come  to-day  to  the 
charge  as  respects  his  personal  deportment  towards  the 
Corinthians.  He  was,  they  said,  a man  who  would 
teach  plausibly,  meaning  something  else  all  the  while  ; 
all  was  not  said  out  boldly  by  him.  He  was  a man 
who  would  make  a promise  for  a momentary  purpose, 
and  then  break  it  for  his  own  private  ends.  The  al- 
leged j)roof  on  Avhich  the  charge  was  founded  was,  that 
he  had  j)romised  to  come  to  Corinth,  and  he  had  not 
com(\  The  Apostle’s  re])ly  includes  a general  defence 
against  a general  chai’ge  : and  a defence  of  the  par- 
ticular cji^e  of  ap])arent  insincei’ity.  He  admits  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


269 


fact,  — lie  liad  intended  to  go  to  Coiintli : and  lie  had 
not  fulfilled  his  intention.  But  he  denies  the  inference 
of  trifling  with  his  word ; or  that  it  was  with  him, 
‘‘  yea  yea  ” — and  then  with  a juggler’s  dexterity, 
“ nay  nay.” 

The  broad  ground  on  which  St.  Paul  denies  the  pos- 
sibility of  such  conduct  is,  that  he  was  a spiritual  Chris- 
tian. He  could  not  do  so,  because  it  would  be  acting 
according  to,  the  flesh,  that  is,  from  interest,  ambition, 
worldly  policy,  or  private  passions.  Whereas  he  was 
in  Christ ; and  Christ  was  the  Christian’s  yea,  the 
Living  Truth  ; and  the  word  is  but  the  expression  of 
the  life.  Now  what  Christ  was,  the  Christian  is,  in 
degree.  Christ,”  says  St.  Paul,  “ was  true ; and 

God  has  established  us  in  Christ.”  Therefore,  fickle- 
ness, duplicity,  or  deceit,  is  impossible  to  us. 

Such  is  the  Apostle’s  argument.  Let  us  notice  how, 
even  in  apparent  trifles,  St.  Paul  fell  back  on  main  prin- 
ciples : “ The  Gospel  goes  into  the  life : Christ  is  yea, 
therefore  be  ye  true.”  So,  in  another  place  : Lie  not 
one  to  another,  seeing  that  ye  have  put  off  the  old  man 
with  his  deeds.”  He  does  not  teach  veracity  as  a sep- 
arate virtue,  but  veracity  as  springing  out  of  Christian- 
ity — a part  of  truth  ; to  be  veracious  was  simply  the 
result  of  a true  life : the  life  being  true,  the  words  and 
sentiments  must  be  veracious. 

Let  us  also  see  why  being  in  Christ  ” makes  caprice 
and  instability  impossible.  Consider  what  caprice  is  — 
it  comes  from  not  knowing  one’s  own  mind.  A fickle- 
minded  man’s  inner  being  is  like  an  undisciplined  mob 
— first  one  voice  of  passion,  then  another  is  heard  — of 
interest,  of  ambition,  or  policy.  A double-minded 
man,”  says  St.  James,  is  unstable  in  all  his  ways  ; ” 
^‘he  that  wavereth  is  like  a wave  of  the  sea.”  And 
we  read  in  Genesis  : Unstable  as  water,  thou  shalt 
not  excel.”  A man  who  is  governed  by  self,  whose 
desires  are  legion,  purposes  according  to  the  flesh,” 
and  his  yea  is  nay  as  often  as  yea.  Now,  what  is  the 
Gospel  of  Christ  ? What  is  it  to  be  established  in 
Christ  ” — ‘‘  anointed  ? ” It  is  freedom  from  self,  from 


270 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


all  selfish  and  personal  wishes.  It  is  to  say,  Not  as  I 
will,  but  as  Thou  wilt : ” it  is  to  place  tlie  nVht  upper- 
most, and  not  pleasure.  It  is  to  be  delivered  from  tliose 
passions  wliose  name  is  Legion,  and  to  sit  at  the  feet 
of  Jesus,  clothed  and  in  our  right  mind.”  Hence  a 
blow  is  struck  at  once  at  the  root  of  instability.  It  is 
as  if  a ship  tossed  about  by  a hundred  gusts  of  whirl- 
wind were  to  feel  suddenly  a strong  lireeze  blowing 
from  one  point,  and  at  once  to  right  and  go  steadily 
before  the  wind. 

A man  who  is  free  from  the  manifold  motives  of  self- 
will  moves  like  the  sun — steady,  majestic,  with  no 
variableness,  neither  shadow  of  turning.  Ills  course 
can  be  calculated.  You  cannot  calculate  the  quarter 
from  whence  the  wind  will  blow  to-morrow,  but  you 
can  calculate  the  precise  moment  when  the  sun  will 
reach  a particular  point.  Such  is  the  description  of  a 
Christian.  St.  Paul  was  a Christian ; therefore  he 
could  not  be  tricky,  or  manoeuvre,  or  do  underhand 
things  : the  Spirit  of  Christ  was  in  his  heart.  Observe, 
too,  that  he  does  not  assert  his  truth  because  of  his 
Apostleship,  but  because  of  his  Christianity;  — for  he 
associated  the  Corinthians  with  himself — ‘‘us  with 
you.” 

But  we  ! — we  ! — how  does  this  describe  us  ? — 
changeful,  vacillating,  many  of  us  tempted  to  subter- 
fuges, unsteadiness,  even  to  insincerity?  Well,  it  is  the 
portrait  of  a Christian  ; and,  so  far  as  it  does  not  de- 
scribe us,  we  are  not  Christians,  we  have  not  the  Spirit 

— so  far  we  need  that  Spirit  to  redeem  us  from  self. 
For  it  is  redemption  in  Christ  from  self,  and  that  alone, 
which  can  make  us  true. 

J^et  us  note  two  things  here,  by  the  way : — 

1.  llemembcr  that  the  Apostle  calls  this  truthfulness 

— this  gift  of  the  Spirit  — “ God’s  seal”  marking  His 
own,  and  an  “ earnest.”  The  true  are  His  ; none  else. 

J^et  us  distinguish  between  an  “ earnest  ” and  a 
“ jJedge.”  A “ pledge  ” is  something  different  in  kind, 
given  in  assurance  of  something  else,  as  when  Judah  gave 
his  staff  and  ring  in  i)Iedge  for  a Iamb  which  he  promised 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


271 


should  be  given  afterwards.  But  an  earnest  ” is 
part  of  that  thing  which  is  eventually  to  be  given  ; as 
when  the  grapes  were  brought  from  Canaan,  or  as 
when  a purchase  is  made,  and  part  of  the  money  is  paid 
down  at  once. 

Now  Baptism  is  a pledge  of  Heaven  — ‘‘  a sign  and 
seal.’’  The  Spirit  of  Truth  in  us  is  an  earnest  of 
Heaven,  it  is  Heaven  begun.  ■ Therefore,  it  is  a foolish 
question  to  ask,  Will  the  true,  pure,  loving,  holy  man 
be  saved  ? He  w saved  ; he  has  Heaven  : it  -is  in  him 
now  — an  earnest  of  more  hereafter ; God  has  shown 
him  the  grapes  of  Canaan  ; God  has  given  him  part  of 
the  inheritance,  all  of  which  is  hereafter  to  be  his  own. 

2.  The  solemn  character  of  the  relationship  between 
ministers  and  congregations,  — ver.  14. 


272 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTT.ES 


LECTURE  XXXVI. 

July  25,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  i.  23,  24.  — Moreover  I call  God  for  a record  upon 
my  soul,  that  to  spare  you  I came  not  as  yet  unto  Corinth.  — Not 
for  that  we  have  dominion  over  your  faith,  but  are  helpers  of  your 
joy;  for  by  faith  ye  stand.” 

1 Corinthians  ii.  1-5.  — ‘‘  But  I determined  this  with  myself,  that  I 
would  not  come  again  to  you  in  heaviness.  — For  if  I make  you 
sorry,  who  is  he  then  that  maketh  me  glad,  but  the  same  which  is 
made  sorry  by  me  ? — And  I wrote  this  same  unto  you,  lest,  when  I 
came,  I should  have  sorrow  from  them  of  whom  I ought  to  rejoice; 
having  confidence  in  you  all,  that  my  joy  is  the  joy  of  you  all.  — 
For  out  of  much  affliction  and  anguish  of  heart  I wrote  unto  you  with 
many  tears;  not  that  ye  should  be  grieved,  but  that  ye  might  know 
the  love  which  I have  more  abundantly  unto  you.  — But  if  any  have 
caused  grief,  he  hath  not  grieved  me,  but  in  part  : that  I may  not 
overcharge  you  all.  ’ ’ 

We  have  seen  that  a double  charge  had  been  alleged 
against  St.  Paul  — of  duplicity  both  as  respected  his 
ministry,  and  also  as  respected  his  personal  character. 
The  charge  against  his  personal  character  had  been 
based  on  the  non-fulfilment  of  his  promise  to  visit 
Corinth  : and  we  found  his  defence  was  twofold  : — 

1.  General  — resting  on  the  moral  impossibility  of 
one  in  Christ  being  wilfully  untrue  ; and  this  was  our 
subject  last  Sunday. 

2.  Special  — and  this  is  our  business  to-day.  This 
])art  of  the  defence  extends  from  the  twenty-thii’d  verse 
of  the  first  chapter  to  the  fifth  verse  of  the  second. 

The  first  reason  for  the  non-fulfilment  of  his  promise 
was  one  of  mercy : ‘‘  Moreover,  I call  God  for  a record 
upon  my  soul,  that  to  sj^are  you,  I came  not  as  yet  unto 
Corinth.’’  By spare  ” the  Apostle  means  — to  save 
them  from  the  sharp  censure  their  lax  morality  would 
have  necessitated.  They  had  treated  this  great  crime 
whicli  had  been  committed  amongst  them  as  a trifle ; 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


273 


they  had  even  boasted  of  it  as  a proof  of  their  Christian 
liberty : and  had  St.  Paul  gone  to  Corinth  while  they 
were  unrepentant,  his  apostolic  duty  would  have  re- 
quired from  him  severe  animadversion.  Now  it  was  to 
spare  them  this  that  he  changed  his  intention.  It  was 
no  caprice,  no  fickleness,  it  was  simply  tenderness  to 
them  ; by  which  Ave  learn  two  things  respecting  St. 
Paul’s  character. 

1.  He  was  not  one  of  those  who  love  to  be  censors  of 
the  faults  of  others.  There  are  some  who  are  ever 
finding  fault ; a certain  appearance  of  superiority  is 
thereby  gained,  for  blame  implies  the  power  of  scanning 
from  a height.  There  are  political  faultfinders,  who  la- 
ment over  the  evil  of  the  times,  and  demagogues  who 
blame  every  power  that  is.  There  are  ecclesiastical 
faultfinders,  who  can  see  no  good  anywhere  in  the 
Church,  they  can  only  expose  abuses.  There  are  social 
faultfinders,  who  are  ever  on  the  watch  for  error,  who 
complain  of  cant  and  shams,  and  Avho  yet  provide  no 
remedy.  There  are  religious  faultfinders,  who  lecture 
the  poor,  or  form  themselves  into  associations,  in  which 
they  rival  the  inquisitors  of  old.  Now  all  this  was  con- 
trary to  the  spirit  of  St.  Paul.  Charity  with  him  was 
not  a fine  word : it  was  a part  of  his  very  being : he 
had  that  love  which  thinketh  no  evil,  which  rejoiceth 
not  in  iniquity,  but  in  the  truth,  which  beareth,  be- 
lie veth,  hopeth  all  things.”  It  pained  him  to  inflict  the 
censure  which  would  give  pain  to  others : to  spare  you 
I came  not  as  yet  unto  Corinth.” 

2.  St.  Paul  was  not  one  of  those  who  love  to  rule  : 

Not  for  that  we  have  dominion  over  your  faith.”  He 

had  nothing  within  him  of  the  mere  Priest. 

Let  us  draw  a difference  between  the  priest  and  the 
minister.  Both  are  anxious  for  men’s  salvation,  but  the 
priest  wishes  to  save  them  by  his  own  official  powers 
and  prerogatives  ; while  the  minister  wishes  to  help 
them  to  save  themselves.  Now  see  how  exactly  this 
verse  expresses  the  distinction  between  these  two  spirits  : 

Dominion  over  your  faith  : ” there  is  the  very  spirit 
of  the  Priest.  Helpers  of  your  joy  : ” there  is  the 


274 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


spirit  of  the  Minister  ; a desire,  not  to  be  a nder,  but  a 
helper ; not  that  he  shall  hold  men  up,  but  that  they 
shall  stand,'^^ 

This  is  the  great  quarrel  between  Paganism  and 
Christianity,  between  Romanism  and  Protestantism, 
between  the  proud  pretensions  of  mere  Churcdimanship 
and  spiritual  Christianity.  How  are  men  saved  ? Di- 
rectly through  Christ  ? or  indirectly  by  Christ  through 
the  priest  ? — by  personal  faith  ? or  by  the  miraculous 
instrumentality  of  the  sacraments  ? What  is  the  Chris- 
tian minister  ? Is  he  one  whose  manipulations  and  med- 
dling are  necessary  to  make  faith  and  moral  goodness 
acceptable,  and  to  imjmrt  to  them  a spiritual  efficacy  ? 
or  is  he  simply  one  whose  office  is  to  serve  his  brethren, 
by  giving  to  them  such  superior  knowledge  as  he  may 
possess,  or  such  superior  influence  as  his  character  may 
command  ? The  Apostle’s  decision  here  is  plain  ; and 
it  is  marvellous  how  any  can  read  his  writings,  and  sup- 
port the  priestly  view.” 

But  do  not  mistake  the  meaning  of  the  word 
‘‘  priest ; ” as  used  by  the  Church  of  England,  it  is 
simply  a corrupted  form  of  fre^hyter.  In  her  formula- 
ries she  does  not  claim  sacrificial  or  priestly  powers  for 
her  officers,  but  only  ministerial  ones.  Observe,  there- 
fore, it  is  not  a question  of  words,  but  of  things  : Priest- 
craft is  a spirit,  a temper  of  mind  ; and  does  not  depend 
upon  a name.  It  is  not  because  a man  is  called  a priest, 
that,  therefore,  he  is  unlike  St.  Paul ; nor  because  a 
man  is  named  a minister,  that,  therefore,  he  is  free  from 
the  priestly  temper.  In  Rome,  where  all  are  called 
priests,  you  have  had  the  humble,  servant-like  spirit  of 
many  a Fenelon.  Among  Dissenters,  where  the  word 
‘‘  priest  ” is  strenuously  avoided,  there  has  been  many  a 
proud,  priestly  spirit,  domineering  and  overbearing. 
Such  men  are  willing  — nay,  zealous  — that  others 
should  be  saved,  ])rovi(led  it  is  only  through  them  ; and 
hence  their  estimate  of  goodness  in  others  is  a peculiar 
one.  Those  who  accept  their  teaching,  and  admit  their 
authority,  they  call  humble,  meek,  Christlike.  Those 
who  dare  to  doubt,  who  seek  Truth  for  themselves,  not 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


blindly  their  truth,  they  call  latitudiiiarians,  proud,  her- 
etics, presumptuous,  and  self-willed.  Thus  the  priestly 
estimate  of  saintliness  is  always  a peculiar  one,  since  the 
main  element  of  it  is  obedience  and  submission,  and  a 
blind  subservience  to  individual  teaching.  Besides, 
these  men  are  always  persecutors : the  assumption  of 
dominion  over  men’s  faith  necessarily  makes  them  so, 
although  in  different  ways.  In  some  ages  they  burn, 
in  others  curse,  in  others  they  affix  stigmas  and  names 
on  their  fellow  ministers,  and  bid  people  beware  of  them 
as  dangerous  teachers.  Now  I give  you  a criterion  : 
Whenever  you  find  a man  trying  to  believe,  and  to 
make  others  believe,  himself  to  be  necessary  to  their 
salvation  and  progress,  saying,  Except  ye  be  circum- 
cised, except  ye  believe  what  I teach,  or  except  I ba|>- 
tize  you,  ye  cannot  be  saved,”  there  you  have  a priest, 
whether  he  be  called  minister,  clergyman,  or  layman. 
But  whenever  you  find  a man  anxious  and  striving  to 
make  men  independent  of  himself,  yea,  independent  of 
all  men ; desiring  to  help  them  — not  to  rest  on  his 
authority,  but  — to  stand  on  their  own  faith,  not  his  ; 
that  they  may  be  elevated,  instructed,  and  educated  ; 
wishing  for  the  blessed  time  to  come  when  his  services 
shall  be  unnecessary,  and  the  prophecy  be  fulfilled  — 
‘‘  They  shall  no  more  teach  every  man  his  brother,  say- 
ing, Know  ye  the  Lord ; for  all  shall  know  Him  fi’om 
the  least  to  the  greatest,”  — there  you  have  the  Chris- 
tian minister,  the  servant,  the  helper  of  your  joy.” 

The  second  reason  St.  Paul  alleges  for  not  comino;  to 
Corinth  is  apparently  a selfish  one  : to  spare  himself 
pain.  And  he  distinctly  says,  he  had  written  to  pain 
them^  in  order  that  he  might  have  joy.  Very  selfish, 
as  at  first  it  sounds  : but  if  we  look  closely  into  it,  it 
only  sheds  a brighter  and  fresher  light  upon  the  exqui- 
site unselfishness  and  delicacy  of  St.  Paul’s  character. 
He  desired  to  save  himself  pain,  because  it  gave  them 
pain.  He  desired  joy  for  himself,  because  his  joy  wa.s 
theirs.  He  will  not  separate  himself  from  them  for  a 
moment : he  will  not  be  the  master,  and  they  the  school : 
it  is  not  Land  you^  but  ive ; my  joy  is  your  joy,  as 


276 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


your  grief  was  my  grief.”  And  so  knit  together  are 
we  beloved,  — minister  and  congregation  ! 

Here  it  is  best  to  explain  the  fifth  verse,  which  in 
our  version  is  badly  punctuated.  If  we  read  it  thus,  it 
is  clear : If  any  have  caused  grief,  he  hath  not 

grieved  me,  but  in  part  (that  I may  not  overcharge) 
you  all.” 

To  resume : — It  was  not  to  pain  them  merely,  that 
he  wrote,  but  because  joy,  deep  and  permanent, -was 
impossible  without  pain  ; as  the  extraction  of  a thorn 
by  a tender  father  gives  a deeper  joy  in  love  to  the 
child.  It  was  not  to  inflict  sorrow,  not  that  ye  should 
be  grieved,  but  that  ye  might  know  the  love  which  I 
have  more  abundantly  unto  you.”  Again,  it  was  not 
to  save  himself  pain  merely,  that  he  did  not  come,  but 
to  save  them  that  pain  which  would  have  given  him 
pain.  Here  there  is  a canon  for  the  difficult  duty  and 
right,  of  blame.  When,  — to  what  extent,  — how,  — 
shall  we  discharge  that  difficult  duty,  so  rarely  done 
with  gracefulness  ? To  blame  is  easy  enough,  with 
some  it  is  all  of  a piece  with  the  hardness  of  their  tem- 
perament ; but  to  do  this  delicately  — how  shall  we  learn 
that  ? I answer.  Love  ! and  then  say  what  you  will  ; 
men  will  bear  anything  if  love  be  there.  If  not,  all 
blame,  however  just,  will  miss  its  mark ; and  St.  Paul 
showed  this  in  the  fourth  verse,  where  love  lies  at  the 
root  of  his  censure.  Nothing  but  love  can  teach  us  how 
to  understand  such  a sentence  as  this  from  a higher 
Heart  than  his  — He  looked  round  about  Him  in 
anger ^ being  grieved  at  the  hardness  of  their  hearts.” 

Here,  too,  arises  an  occasion  for  considering  the  close 
connection  between  ministers  and  congregations.  Let 
us  compare  the  fourteenth  verse  of  the  first  chapter  — 
We  are  your  rejoicing,  even  as  ye  also  are  ours  in 
the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus  ” — with  the  third  verse  of 
the  second  chajiter  — Having  confidence  in  you  all 
that  my  joy  is  the  joy  of  you  all  ” — and  what  a lesson 
of  comfort  shall  we  not  learn  ! But  no  doubt  much 
mistake  is  made  in  representing  the  case  of  ministers 
now  as  j)arallel  to  that  of  the  Apostles,  and  claiming, 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


277 


as  is  sometimes  done,  the  same  reverence  for  their  words 
as  the  Apostles  claimed  rightfully  for  themselves.  Much 
mistake,  too,  is  made  in  drawing  the  parallel,  or  expect- 
ing it  in  the  mutual  affection  of  ministers  and  people. 
For  gifts  differ,  and  more  than  all,  circumstances  of 
trial  differ ; and  it  is  only  when  dangers  are  undergone 
together,  like  those  of  the  Apostles,  that  the  cases 
can  be  parallel.  Doubtless,  in  the  early  Church,  and 
among  the  persecuted  Covenanters,  similar  instances 
have  occurred,  but  rarely  do  they  happen  in  prosper- 
ous times. 

Yet  let  me  call  attention  to  one  point,  in  which  the 
connection  is  equally  solemn.  I waive  the  question  of 
personal  affection  and  private  influence.  In  the  public 
ministry  of  a Church,  week  by  week,  a congregation 
listens  to  one  man’s  teaching  ; year  by  year,  a solemn 
connection  is  thus  formed  ; for  so,  thoughts  are  infused, 
perforce  absorbed.  They  grow  in  silence,  vegetate,  and 
bear  fruit  in  the  life  and  practice  of  the  congregation  ; 
and  a minister  may  even  trace  his  modes  of  thinking  in 
his  people’s  conversation  — not  as  mere  phrases  learnt 
by  rote,  but  as  living  seed  which  .has  germinated  in 
them.  A very  solemn  thing  ! for  what  is  so  solemn  as 
to  have  that  part  of  a man  which  is  his  most  real  self — 
his  thoughts  and  faith  — grow  into  others,  and  become 
part  of  their  being  ! Well,  that  will  be  his  rejoicing  in 
the  judgment  day ; for  that  harvest  he  will  put  in  his 
claim.  We  are  your  rejoicing.”  It  was  to  be  theirs 
that  St.  Paul  had  taught  them  in  simplicity  and  godly  sin- 
cerity, truly  and  fearlessly.  It  was  to  be  his  that  spir- 
itual thoughts  and  contrite  feelings  had  been  through 
him  infused  into  them,  and  this  though  they  partially 
denied  it.  Still,  deny  it  as  they  might,  they  could  not 
rob  him  of  his  harvest. 

My  Christian  brethren,  may  that  mutual  rejoicing  be 
yours  and  mine  in  the  day  of  Jesus  Christ ! 


24 


278 


LKCTURIiS  ON  TIIK  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XXXVII. 

August  1,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  ii.  6-11.  — “ Saffioient  to  sush  a man  is  this  punish- 
ment, which  was  inflicted  of  many,  — So  that  contrariwise  ye  ought 
rather  to  forgive  him,  and  comfort  him,  lest  perhaps  such  a one 
should  be  swallowed  up  with  overmuch  sorrow.  — Wherefore  I be- 
seech you  that  ye  would  confirm  your  love  toward  him.  — For  to 
this  end  also  did  I write,  that  I might  know  the  proof  of  you, 
whether  ye  be  obedient  in  all  things.  — To  whom  ye  forgive  any- 
thing, I forgive  also  : for  if  I forgave  anything,  to  whom  I forgave 
it,  for  your  sakes  forgave  I it  in  the  person  of  Christ;  — Lest  Satan 
should  get  an  advantage  of  us;  for  we  are  not  ignorant  of  his  de- 
vices. ’ ’ 

The  main  defence  of  the  Apostle  against  tlie  charge 
of  fickleness  in  the  non-fulfilment  of  his  promise  was, 
that  he  had  abstained  from  going  to  Corinth  in  order 
to  spare  them  the  sharp  rebuke  he  must  have  adminis- 
tered had  he  gone  thither.  A great  crime  had  been 
committed  : the  Church  had  been  compromised,  more 
especially  as  some  of  the  Corinthians  had  defended  the 
iniquity  on  the  ground  of  Liberty,  and  St.  Paul  had 
stayed  away  after  giving  his  advice,  that  not  he,  but 
they  themselves,  might  do  the  work  of  punishment, 
lie  gave  sentence  — that  the  wicked  person  should  be 
put  away,  but  he  wished  tliem  to  execute  the  sentence. 
For  it  was  a matter  of  greater  importance  to  St.  Paul 
that  tlie  Corinthians  should  feel  rightly  the  necessity  of 
punishment,  than  merely  that  the  offender  should 
be  punished.  It  was  not  to  vindicate  Ids  authority 
that  lie  wrote,  but  that  they  should  feel  the  authority 
of  right ; and  the  Corintliians  obeyed.  They  excom- 
municated the  incestuous  person  ; for  the  Epistle  of  the 
Ajiostle  stirred  u])  their  languid  consciences  into  active 
exercise.  Ac(*ordingly,  he  applauds  their  conduct,  and 
r(‘(*onini(‘nds  th(*in  now  to  foi-give  the  offender  whom 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


279 


they  had  punished ; so  that,  in  this  section,  we  have 
St.  Paul  s views  respecting  — 

I.  The  Christian  Idea  of  Punishment. 

II.  The  Christian  Idea  of  Absolution. 

I.  The  Christian  idea  of  punishment  includes  in  it, 
first,  the  Reformation  of  the  Offender. 

This  is  the  first  and  most  natural  object  of  punish- 
ment ; and  we  infer  it  to  have  been  part  of  St.  Paul’s 
intention,  because  when  this  end  had  been  attained,  he 
required  that  punishment  should  cease  : Sufficient  to 
such  a man  is  this  punishment.”  Now  herein  consists 
the  peculiar  spirit  of  Christianity,  that  whereas  the 
ancient  system  of  law  sacrificed  the  individual  to  the 
society,  and  feeble  philanthropy  would  sacrifice  society 
to  the  individual,  Christianity  would  save  both.  It 
respects  the  decencies  of  life  and  its  rights  : it  says  the 
injurer  must  suffer : but  it  says,  too,  he  also  is  a living 
soul,  we  must  consider  him  : we  must  punish,  so  that 
he  shall  be  made  not  worse,  but  better.  So  it  was  not 
only  the  dignity  of  the  Corinthian  Church  that  St. 
Paul  thouo;ht  of : he  thouoffit  also  of  the  the  fallen, 
guilty  state  of  his  spirit,  who  had  degraded  that  Church. 
He  punished  him,  that  his  spirit  might  be  saved  in  the 
day  of  the  Lord  Jesus. 

The  second  thing  included  in  this  idea,  is  the  Purifi- 
cation of  Society.  Punishment  was  also  necessary  for 
this  reason  — that  sin  committed  with  impunity  corrupts 
the  body  of  men  to  which  the  sinner  belongs.  This 
St.  Paul  declares  in  the  First  Epistle : A little  leaven 
leaveneth  the  whole  lump.”  Now  the  purification  of 
society  is  effected  partly  by  example,  and  partly  by 
removal  of  the  evil.  The  discipline  by  which  this  re- 
moval was  effected  was  called  excommunication.  At 
that  time,  apostolic  excommunication  represented  to  the 
world  God’s  system  of  punishment.  I do  not  say  that 
it  does  so  now^  for  the  Church  and  the  World  have 
become  so  mixed.  Church  and  State  so  trench  upon 
each  other’s  functions,  that  we  know  not  where  the 


280 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


division  is.  But  I conceive  tliat,  in  early  times,  the 
Church  discipline  was  representative  of  the  true  idea 
of  punishment:  clearly  St.  Paul  thought  it  was  so. 
He  did  not  think  of  extending  it  beyond  the  Church, 
for  his  idea  of  the  Church  was  that  of  a pure  society  in 
the  world,  representing  what  the  world  should  be ; and 
so  he  does  not  require  this  separation  to  be  rigidly 
enforced  with  respect  to  worldly  men.  This  point  is 
dwelt  on  in  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  First  Epistle,  in  the 
tenth  verse,  and  also  in  the  thirteenth  verse  of  the 
twelfth  chapter.  For  God  judged  those  without,  while 
the  Church,  God’s  representative,  judged  and  exhibited 
this  principle  of  punishment  on  those  within. 

These  two  — to  reform,  and  to  serve  as  an  example, 
are  the  only  views  of  punishment  which  are  found  in 
the  popular  notion  of  it.  But  if  we  think  deeper  on 
the  subject,  we  shall  find,  I believe,  that  there  is 
another  idea  in  punishment,  which  cannot  be  lost  sight 
of.  It  is  this  — that  punishment  is  the  expression  of 
righteous  indignation  : God’s  punishment  is  the  expres- 
sion of  God’s  indignation,  man’s  punishment  is  the 
expression  of  man’s  indignation.  In  the  fifth  verse  of 
this  chapter,  as  explained  once  before,  St.  Paul  evi- 
dently thought  that  the  guilty  man  had  grieved  — that 
is,  offended  — him  partly,  and  partly  the  whole  Church. 
Accordingly,  their  punishment  of  him  was  an  expres- 
sion of  their  indignation  against  him,  as  is  clear  from 
the  eleventh  verse  of  the  seventh  chapter,  in  which 
we  must  mark  particularly  the  word  revenge,”  and 
compare  it  with  the  text  of  Rom.  xiii.  4,  — a revenger 
to  execute  wrath,”  — where  the  word  is  used,  not  in  its 
evil  meanino;,  but  in  the  sense  of  righteous  resentment 
expressing  itself  in  punishment.  For  there  is  a right 
feeling  in  human  nature,  which  we  call  resentment : it 
exists  equally  in  the  best  and  the  worst  natures  ; al- 
though in  the  worst,  it  becomes  malice.  It  existed  in 
(fiirist  Himself,  for  it  is  not  a peculiarity  of  fallen  hu- 
man nature,  but  it  is  an  inse])arable  element  of  human 
iiature  itself.  Now  let  us  mark  what  follows  from  this  : 
Man  is  the  image  of  God  : all  spirits  are  of  the  same 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


281 


family.  So  there  is  something  in  God  which  corres- 
ponds with  that  which  we  call  resentment,  stripped,  of 
course,  of  all  emotion,  selfishness,  or  fury. 

It  is  for  this  reason  that  we  should  strongly  object  to 
explain  away  those  words  of  Scripture,  the  wrath  of 
God  : ” God  is  angry  with  the  wicked  every  day  : ” 

the  wrath  of  God  is  revealed  from  heaven.”  These 
sayings  contain  a deep  and  awful  truth.  God’s  punish- 
ment is  God’s  Wrath  against  sin  ; and  is  not  merely 
the  consequence  of  lifeless  laws,  but  the  expression  of 
the  feeling  of  a Living  Spirit.  It  would  be  most  per- 
ilous to  do  away  with  these  words  ; for  if  the  Wrath  of 
God  be  only  a figure.  His  Love  must  be  but  a figure 
too.  Such,  therefore,  is  the  true  idea  of  human  punish- 
ment. It  exists  to  reform  the  offender,  to  purify  so- 
ciety, and  also  to  express  God’s  and  man’s  indignation 
at  sin. 

II.  The  Christian  Idea  of  Absolution. 

Before  we  go  further,  it  will  be  well  to  explain  some 
terms.  Forgiveness  is  one  thing,  absolution  is  another. 
Absolution  is  the  authoritative  declaration  of  forgive- 
ness. For  example,  when  Christ  said  to  the  sick  of  the 
palsy,  Son,  be  of  good  cheer;  thy  sins  be  forgiven 
thee,”  He  did  not  at  this  moment  forgive  him  : he  was 
forgiven  already,  but  it  was  then  that  He  declared  his 
forgiveness. 

Now  the  case  before  us  is  a distinct,  unquestionable 
instance  of  ecclesiastical  absolution.  You  are  aware 
that  many  utterly  deny  the  possibility  of  such  a power 
existing  in  man,  beyond  a mere  declaration  of  God’s 
promises  to  faith  ; and  the  assurance  of  forgiveness  on 
the  part  of  any  man  would  be  counted,  by  some  per- 
sons, as  blasphemy.  At  once  the  cry  of  the  Pharisees 
would  be  raised  — Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God 
only?  ” Now  here,  in  the  Church  of  Corinth,  is  a sin  : 
it  is  an  offence  not  only  against  man,  but  also  against 
God,  — not  a crime  merely  against  society,  but  a sin, 
and  yet  St.  Paul  says  I forgive.”  This  is  absolution  ; 


282 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTI.ES 


Man’s  declaration  of  God’s  Forgiveness  — man  speak- 
ing In  God’s  stead. 

1.  We  consider,  first,  the  use  of  absolution.  It  was 
to  save  from  remorse.  Absolution  is  here  considered 
as  a comfort.”  Let  us  examine  tills  more  closely. 
There  is  a difference  between  penitence  and  remorse : 
penitence  works  life,  remorse  works  death.  This  latter 
is  more  destructive  even  than  self-righteousness,  for  it 
crushes,  paralyzes,  and  kills  the  soul.  No  one,  perhaps, 
but  a minister  of  Christ  has  seen  it  in  all  its  power : but 
some  of  us  can  tell  you  how  the  recollection  of  sin  com- 
mitted haunts  men  like  a fiend.  And  so  long  as  society 
lays  its  ban  on  the  offender,  or  so  long  as  he  feels  that 
a secret  crime,  if  once  known,  would  be  accursed  of  the 
world,  so  long  hope  appears  to  him  impossible.  It  is  in 
vain  that  you  speak  of  God’s  love  and  mercy  in  Christ 
to  such  a man.  He  will  cry,  Yes  : but  is  He  merci- 
ful to  ME  ? ” Therefore,  over  and  above  the  general 
declaration  of  God’s  mercy,  there  is  needed,  if  you 
would  comfort  truly,  a special,  personal,  human  assu- 
rance to  the  individual. 

2.  This  absolution  was  representative.  It  repre- 
sented the  forgiveness  of  the  congregation  and  the  for- 
giveness of  God.  St.  Paul  forgave  the  sinner  “ for 
their  sakes,”  and  in  the  person,”  that  is,  in  the  stead, 

of  Christ.”  Thus,  as  the  punishment  of  man  is  repre- 
sentative of  the  punishment  and  wrath  of  God,  so  the 
absolution  of  man  is  representative  of  the  forgiveness  of 
God.  For  Human  nature  is  representative  of  Divine 
nature.  And,  further,  the  Church  represents  Hu- 
manity, and  the  Minister  represents  the  Church. 
Therefore,  he  who  pronounces  absolution  at  a sick 
man’s  bedside  is  but  merely,  as  St.  Paul  was,  speaking 
in  the  person  of  Christ.  You  will  object,  perchance  : 
If  God  has  forgiven  the  sinner,  a man’s  word  cannot 
add  to  it:  if  He  has  not  forgiven  liim,  a man’s  word 
cannot  alter  it.  Yes,  that  is  very  true  ; but  now,  in 
reply,  consider  a distinct  command  of  Christ : Into 
whatsoever  house  ye  enter,  first  say.  Peace  be  to  this 
house.  And  if  the  Son  of  Peace  be  there,  your  peace 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


283 


shall  rest  upon  it : if  not,  it  shall  turn  to  you  again.” 
Now  a man  might  have  said,  What  good  is  there  in 
saying  peace  ? ” If  God’s  peace  be  in  tliat  family, 
you  cannot  add  to  it ; if  not,  you  cannot  alter  it.  But 
Christ  says.  Give  your  blessing : it  will  not  create 
peace,  but  it  will  make  it  felt:  Your  peace  shall  rest 
upon  it.”  So  if  a Christian  minister  absolves,  in  Christ’s 
words  we  may  say,  If  the  sin  be  forgiven,  that  abso- 
lution will  perhaps  convey  the  soothing  conviction  to 
the  soul ; if  not,  your  absolution  will  turn  to  you 
again.” 

In  conclusion,  remember  the  ministerial  absolution  is 
representative  : St.  Paul  forgave  in  the  name  of  the 
Christian  congregation.  Every  member,  therefore,  of 
that  congregation  was  forgiving  the  sinner : it  was  his 

rio;ht  to  do  so,  and  it  was  in  his  name  that  St.  Paul 

® • 

spoke ; nay,  it  was  because  each  member  had  forgiven, 
that  St.  Paul  forgave. 

Absolution,  therefore,  is  not  a priestly  prerogative, 
belonging  to  one  set  of  men  exclusively.  It  belongs  to 
Man,  and  to  the  minister  because  he  stands  as  the 
representative  of  purified  Humanity.  The  Son  of 
man,”  — that  is,  Man,  — hath  power  on  earth  to  for- 
give sins.”  For  society  has  this  power  collectively — a 
most  actual  and  fearful  power.  Who  does  not  know 
how  the  unforgivingness  of  society  in  branding  men  and 
women  as  outcasts,  makes  their  case  hopeless.  Men 
bind  his  sins  — her  crimes  — on  earth  : and  they  re- 
main bound  ! Now  every  man  has  this  power  individ- 
ually. The  most  remarkable  instance,  perhaps,  in  the 
Old  Testament,  is  that  of  Jacob  and  Esau.  For  years 
the  thought  of  his  deceit,  and  the  dread  of  his  brother, 
had  weighed  on  Jacob’s  heart ; and  when  Esau  forgave 
him,  it  was  as  if  he  had  seen  the  face  of  God.”  Be 
sure,  this  power  is  yours  also.  When  a parent  forgives 
a child,  the  child  feels  that  God  is  nearer  to  him. 
When  a master  accepts  a pupil’s  repentance,  the  pupil 
goes  forth  joyful  from  the  master’s  presence.  When 
schoolboys  receive  one  who  has  been  rejected,  into  fel- 
lowship again,  a load  is  taken  from  that  boy’s  bosom. 


284 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


When  we  treat  the  guilty  with  tenderness,  liope  rises 
in  them  towards  God:  their  hearts  say,  They  love 
us,  will  not  God  forgive  and  love  us  too  ? ’’ 

It  is  a sublime.  Godlike  privilege  wliich  you  have. 
Oh  ! do  not  quarrel  with  Romanist  or  Tractarian  about 
the  dogma.  Go  and  make  it  real  in  your  own  lives. 
Represent  on  earth  the  Divine  clemency  : forgive  in  tlie 
Person  of  Christ.  Loose  suffering  outcasts  from  sin, 
and  it  will  be  loosed  in  Heaven. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


285 


LECTURE  XXXVIII. 

August  8,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  ii.  12-17. — “Furthermore,  when  I came  to  Troas 
to  preach  Christ’s  gospel,  and  a door  was  opened  unto  me  of  the 
Lord.  — I had  no  rest  in  my  spirit,  because  1 found  not  Titus  ray 
brother  : but  taking  my  leave  of  them , I went  from  thence  into 
]\iacedonia.  — Now  thanks  be  unto  God,  which  always  causeth  us  to 
triumph  in  Christ,  and  maketh  manifest  the  savor  of  his  knowledge 
by  us  in  every  place.  — For  we  are  unto  God  a sweet  savor  of  Christ, 
in  them  that  are  saved,  and  in  them  that  perish  : — To  the  one  we 
are  the  savor  of  death  unto  death;  and  to  the  other  the  savor  of  life 
unto  life.  And  who  is  sufficient  for  these  things  ? — For  we  are  not 
as  many,  which  corrupt  the  word  of  God  : but  as  of  sincerity,  but 
as  of  God,  in  the  sight  of  God  speak  we  in  Christ.” 

2 CoRiMTHiANS,  iii.  1-3.  — “ Do  we  begin  again  to  commend  our- 
selves ? or  need  we,  as  some  others,  epistles  of  commendation  to  you, 
or  letters  of  commen  lation  from  you  ? — Ye  are  our  epistle  written 
in  our  hearts,  known  and  read  of  all  men  : — Forasmuch  as  ye  are 
manifestly  declared  to  be  the  epistle  of  Christ  ministered  by  us,  writ- 
ten not  with  ink,  but  with  the  Spirit  of  the  living  God;  not  in  tables 
of  stone,  but  in  fleshy  tables  of  the  heart.” 

Our  last  discourse  closed  with  the  eleventh  verse, 
and  was  employed  chiefly  about  St.  Paul’s  doctrine  of 
Christian  absolution.  To-day  our  exposition  begins  at 
the  twelfth  verse,  which  is  an  example  of  one  of  those 
rapid  transitions  so  common  in  the  writings  of  the 
Apostle.  The  first  thing  we  have  to  do  then,  is  to  trace 
the  connection.  Apparently  there  is  none  : we  cannot 
at  once  see  what  the  argument  has  to  do  with  St.  Paul 
going  to  Troas,  nor  what  his  unrest  there  has  to  do 
with  the  voyage  to  Macedonia.  But  remember,  that 
the  main  subject  is  St.  Paul’s  defence  against  the  charge 
of  caprice.  He  had  showed  why  he  had  not  gone  to 
Corinth  according  to  promise.  It  was  to  enable  the 
Corinthians  to  do  the  work  of  excommunication  them- 
selves, lest  he  should  take  it  out  of  their  hands,  and  so 
rob  them  of  the  spiritual  discipline  which  comes  from 


286 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTI.ES 


men’s  own  exertions.  For  it  is  by  what  we  do,  and 
not  by  what  is  done  for  ns,  that  we  become  strong  or 
good. 

St.  Pan!  gives  an  additional  proof  that  it  was  not 
foro;etfulness  of  them  which  liad  made  him  chano-e  his 
mind : this  proof  was  his  unrest  at  Troas.  While 
there,  one  subject  engrossed  all  his  thoughts,  the  state 
of  Corinth  ; and  the  question  — what  would  be  the 
}‘esult  of  the  letter  he  had  sent  ? At  Troas  he  expect- 
ed to  meet  Titus,  who  was  bearing  the  reply  : but  not 
tinding  him  there,  he  could  not  rest ; he  could  not  take 
full  comfort  even  from  the  door  which  had  been 
opened  ” for  success.  He  left  his  work  half  finished, 
and  he  hastened  into  Macedonia  to  meet  Titus.  His 
argument,  therefore,  is,  Did  this  look  like  forgetful- 
ness ? Did  this  make  it  probable  that  he  had  used 
lightness  or  purposed  according  to  the  flesh  ? ” Or 
did  it  show  that  he  was  absent  unwillingly,  putting 
force  on  himself,  like  a wise  parent  who  refuses  to  see 
his  child,  thono-h  his  heart  is  all  the  while  bleeding  at 
what  he  inflicts  ? This  is  the  connection  between  the 
twelfth  and  thirteenth  verses. 

The  next  thing  we  have  to  do  is  to  explain  the  link 
of  thought  between  the  thirteenth  and  the  fourteenth 
verses.  Here  there  is  another  startling  abruptness. 
The  Apostle  on  mention  of  Macedonia  breaks  off  into 
thanksgiving : Now  thanks  be  unto  God.”  Here  is 

a notable  instance  of  the  peculiar  style  of  St.  Paul. 
He  starts  from  the  main  subject  into  a digression,  caused 
by  a thought  which  he  had  not  expressed,  and  which 
it  was  not  necessary  to  express,  since  it  was  known  to 
his  readers.  What  was,  then,  the  thought  at  which  he 
broke  off*  here  into  an  exclamation  of  thanksgiving  ? 
When  we  have  found  that,  the  connection  will  be 
clear. 

It  was  a thought  which  to  tlie  Corinthians  would 
present  itself  at  once.  Observe,  he  had  said  that  he 
went  into  Macedonia.  What  did  he  find  there  ? He 
found  Titus  with  the  long-lookcd-for  letters,  containing 
news  far  better  than  he  had  hoped  for  ; that  the  Cor- 


TO  THE  CORIXTHIANS. 


287 


intliians  liaJ  done  all  that  he  asked,  had  been  recalled 
to  shame  for  wrong  and  to  a sense  of  right,  that  they 
had  excommunicated  the  criminal,  and  that  the  criminal 
himself  was  penitent.  We  find  this  is  referred  to  in 
the  fifth,  sixth,  and  seventh  verses  of  the  seventh  chapter 
of  this  Epistle.  As  soon,  therefore,  as  St.  Paul  came  to 
the  word  Macedonia,”  memory  presented  to  him 
what  had  greeted  him  there,  and  in  his  rapid  way  — 
thoughts  succeeding  each  other  like  lightning,  — he 
says,  without  going  through  the  form  of  explaining 
why  he  says  it,  Now  thanks  be  unto  God.”  It  may 
be  observed,  that  it  is  only  by  this  kind  of  study  that 
the  Bible  becomes  intelligible.  . 

Now  that  the  difficulty  of  the  connection  has  been 
removed,  we  select  from  the  verses  two  subjects  for 
consideration : — 

I.  The  assertion  in  the  close  of  the  chapter : That 
the  Christian  is  always  a conqueror. 

II.  The  nature  of  true  Christian  work  — in  the  com- 
mencement of  the  third  chapter. 

I.  The  assertion.  “ Now  thanks  be  unto  God,  who 
always  causeth  us  to  triumph  in  Christ.”  There  was 
a moment  in  the  Apostle’s  life  when  he  half  regretted 
what  he  had  done.  After  the  letter  was  sent,  he  felt 
the  pain  of  what  was  irrevocable  : he  had  no  rest  in 
his  spirit : for  a moment  he  did  repent  his  truthful- 
]iess ; for  it  was  possible  that  his  firmness  might  have 
cost  him  the  Church  of  Corinth.  They  might  have 
rebelled  against  his  command  ; they  might  be  too  little 
advanced  in  the  Christian  life  for  such  severity.  But 
when  the  news  came,  then  he  learnt  a lesson.  He 
had  spoken  in  sincerity  and  godly  truthfulness,  and 
sincerity  is  best.  He  felt  that  he  had  won  ; though  a 
few  hours  before,  his  work  seemed  over  in  Corinth. 
Thence  we  can  divine  the  truth  that  the  Christian  is  a 
conqueror,  even  in  defeat.  His  is  always  a triumphant 
career,  sooner  or  later.  This  was  not  a lesson  for  St. 
Paul  only,  but  it  is  one  also  for  us.  On  earth  we  have 


288 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


nothino;  to  do  with  success  or  with  results,  hut  only  with 
being  true  to  God,  and/or  God  ; for  it  is  sincerity,  and 
not  success,  which  is  the  sweet  savor  before  God. 

Now  there  are  two  branches  in  which  this  assertion 
is  true  : — 

1.  The  defeat  of  the  true-hearted  is  victory. 

2.  The  apparent  harm  done  by  the  true-hearted  is 
victory. 

1.  It  was  quite  possible  that  the  result  might  have 
turned  out  otherwise  : instead  of  penitence,  there  might 
have  been  hardness ; instead  of  strengthened,  there 
might  have  been  only  weakened  influence.  Such 
thoughts  as  these  must  have  presented  themselves  to 
the  x\])ostle  : Do  not  be  so  bold  or  so  decided  ; you 
will  very  likely  cripple  your  influence  : ” and  these 
fears  might  have  been  realized  ; for  in  this  world  truth 
is  not  always  successful.  Now,  it  seems  a most  impor- 
tant Christian  lesson  to  insist  upon  the  truth,  that  defeat 
in  doing  right  is  nevertheless  Victory.  Every  one 
knows  the  common  adage,  ‘‘  Honesty  is  the  best 
policy  : ’’  Do  right,  Paul,  and  you  will  not  lose  influ- 
ence. This  is  true  sometimes  ; but  St.  Paul  would  not 
have  been  a Christian  unless  he  had  felt  — I may  lose 
all ; and  yet  I will  do  right,  and  be  true  to  conscience. 
Let  us  get  rid  of  that  false  notion,  that  we  are  sure  to 
win  if  we  are  true  to  conscience.  No!  often  — most 
often  — you  must  serve  God  at  a loss.  Surely  the  Cross 
should  teach  us,  that  in  this  world  doing  right,  and 
being  true,  is  not  the  best  policy,’’  as  the  world  un- 
derstands it.  The  lives  of  the  Apostles,  the  lives  of 
all  God’s  best  and  noblest  should  teach  us  this  lesson. 
When  did  you  ever  hear  that  conscience  could  be 
saved  without  a self-sacrifice  ? For  the  victory  of  the 
true  lies  not  so  much  in  winning  the  contest,  but  in 
spreading  a Spirit.  Even  had  St.  Paul  failed  in  his 
immediate  object,  the  conversion  of  the  Corinthians, 
think  you  that  that  true  E})istle  of  his  would  have  lost 
its  ])ower  in  the  ages  to  come  ? Impossible  I and  that 
would  have  been  his  trium[)h.  Beyond,  beyond  — oh  I 
beyond  the  present  must  we  look  for  victory  I 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


289 


2.  The  apparent  harm  clone  by  the  true-hearted  is 
victory.  St.  Paul  might  have  done  harm ; he  might 
have  produced  rebellion  at  Corinth.  Still,  should  he 
not  be  true  ? With  steadiness  he  clearly  contemplated 
this  possibility.  His  truth  would  be  to  some  the 
savor  of  death  unto  death ; ” for  there  can  be  no  doubt 
that  the  faithful  preaching  of  the  Gospel  sometimes 
kills.  But  it  is  no  less  the  Gospel  — no  less  a sweet  sa- 
vor to  God.  Just  as  the  vigorous  breezes  that  are  fresh 
life  to  the  strong,  are  death  to  the  feeble  lungs,  so  truth 
— strong  truth  — put  before  the  haters  of  truth,  makes 
them  worse.  For  example,  the  sacrifice  suggested  to 
the  rich  young  ruler  was  too  strong  for  the  weakness  of 
his  spirit,  and  the  faint  desire  of  good  which  was  in  him 
was  slain.  And  yet  is  this  Gospel  which  destroys,  a 
sweet  and  acceptable  savor  to  God,  even  in  them  that 
perish.  An  awful  truth  ! The  Gospel  preached  in  fidel- 
ity ruins  human  souls.  A banquet!’’  — oh  I know 
ye  what  ye  say  ? It  is  sometimes  death  to  hear  it  I 
And  yet  we  must  not  dilute  it.  How  the  Apostle  re- 
joiced in  that  day  that  he  had  been  uncompromising, 
and  firm,  and  true  I not  dealing  deceitfully  with  the 
Word  of  God.”  Even  had  the  Corinthians  perished, 
he  must  have  rejoiced  that  their  blood  was  not  on  his 
head. 

II.  The  nature  of  true  Christian  work. 

The  work  of  the  Apostle  Paul  is  contained  in  the 
second  verse  : Ye  are  our  Epistle  written  in  our  hearts, 
known  and  read  of  all  men.”  But  let  us  explain  the 
meaning  of  this  phrase  and  its  connection.  The  close 
of  the  second  chapter  looked  like  boasting  — it  seemed 
like  a recommendation  of  himself.  Now,  in  these  verses, 
he  is  replying  to  the  possible  charge.  He  declares  that 
he  wanted  no  commendation  to  them,  no  praise,  no 
recommendatory  letters  ; and  in  this  he  was  alluding  to 
the  ImaroXal  avaratiKcu  of  the  early  Church.  A great 
Christian  brotherhood  was  the  Church  of  Christ ; and 
if  a Christian  of  Corinth  travelled  to  Rome  or  Galatia, 
he  received  from  the  bishop  or  congregation  letters  of 


290 


LECrrUllES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


1 


recommendation,  and  was  at  home  at  once  among 
friends.  Now  such  a letter,  St.  Paul  says,  he  did  not 
need.  Nor  need  any  boasting  be  his,  nor  praise  from 
himself  or  others  : his  works  were  too  well  known. 
What,  then,  were  St.  Paul’s  works  ? What  were  St. 
Paul’s  Epistles  ? You  will  answer  at  once.  These  which 
we  hold  in  our  hands.  No ! ” replies  the  Apostle. 
The  Epistles  of  St.  Paul  were  not  those  which  were 
written  then  on  parchment,  or  printed  since  in  ink,  but 
those  which  were  written  by  God  as  truth  on  human 
hearts  : Ye  are  our  Epistle.” 

Now,  first : Observe  the  remarkable  expression  of 
the  Apostle : his  letter ! He  was  writing  on  men’s 
hearts  ; and  each  man  here  is  writino-  somethino; : and 
his  writing  lasts  for  ever.  Pilate  uttered  a deeper 
truth  than  he  thought,  when  he  said,  What  I have 
written,  I have  written.”  For  deeds  are  permanent 
and  irrevocable  : that  which  you  have  written  on  life 
is  for  ever.  You  cannot  rub,  blot,  or  scratch  it  out : 
there  it  is  for  ever,  your  Epistle  to  the  world  and  to  the 
everlasting  ages,  for  all  eternity,  palpably  what  you 
are,  to  be  known  and  read-  of  all  men.”  This  it  is 
which  makes  life  so  all-important.  Oh  ! then,  take 
care  what  you  write,  for  you  can  never  unwrite  it 
ao:ain. 

Secondly : The  best  of  all  Epistles  is  that  which  a 
man  writes  and  engraves  on  human  spirits,  not  with 
ink,  but  with  the  spirit  of  the  living  God  ; not  in  tables 
of  stone,  but  in  fleshy  tables  of  the  heart.”  What 
then?  A man’s  ‘‘works”  — what  are  they?  That 
which  makes  him  “immortal,”  as  we  say.  But  what 
is  that  immortality?  Well,  the  Pyramids  were  cut  in 
tables  of  stone,  and  the  monuments  of  Assyria  are  more 
enduring  than  brass,  and  yet  theij  will  wear  out.  There 
arc  works  which  will  outlast  even  these  — written,  not 
in  rock,  but  in  ink  ; noble  works  of*  the  Gifted  and  the 
J^ure  and  True.  There  is  the  Bible,  and  St.  Paul’s 
Ej)istles  as  ])art  of  it.  But  there  is  something  which 
will  outlast  the  l^yramids  and  the  Bible  : a human  soul, 
and  the  work  for  good  or  evil  done  upon  it.  This  is 


TO  THE  COmXTHIANS. 


291 


the  true  Christian  work  ; it  is  the  highest : and  yet  not 
only  that  which  an  Apostle  could  do,  but  that  which 
all  may  do.  And  think  how  many  do  it ! The  mother, 
the  teacher,  the  governess,  the  tutor  — not  ministers 
and  Apostles  only  — are  doing  it.  Men,  my  Brothers, 
your  truest,  your  best  work,  almost  your  sole  work,  is 
in  that  which  lasts  for  ever. 

Thirdly  : It  is  fitting  to  distinguish  between  the 
scribe,  or  amanuensis,  and  the  real  author  of  the  Epistle. 
St.  Paul’s  language  might  have  seemed  a ground  of 
boasting  : had  he  not  written  that  which  was  to  last  ? 
But  he  makes  this  distinction,  that  it  was  the  Epistle  of 
Christ,  ministered  by  him.  The  Spirit  of  Christ  — He 
was  the  author  of  the  work,  and  St.  Paul  was  but  the 
amanuensis.  Suppose,  for  example,  that  the  poor 
scribe,  who  wrote  one  of  tliese  Epistles  at  St.  Paul’s 
dictation,  had  prided  himself  upon  it,  because  it  was 
written  by  his  pen.  Yet  that  were  not  so  foolish,  as  if 
some  poor  miserable  minister  or  teacher,  rejoicing  over 
his  success,  were  to  misdeem  the  work  his  own.  • 

The  amanuensis  ? — the  man  ? No  ! It  is  the  Spirit  of 
the  living  God  which  does  the  work  on  human  hearts. 


292 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XXXIX. 


1852. 

2 Corinthians,  iii.  4-18.  — “ And  such  trust  have  we  through  Christ 
to  God-ward  : — Not  that  we  are  sufficient  of  ourselves  to  think  any- 
thing as  of  ourselves;  but  our  sufficiency  is  of  God;  — Who  also 
hath  made  us  able  ministers  of  the  New  Testament;  not  of  the  letter, 
but  of  the  spirit  : for  the  letter  killeth,  but  the  spirit  giveth  life.  — 
But  if  the  ministration  of  death,  written  and  engraven  in  stones, 
was  glorious,  so  that  the  children  of  Israel  could  not  steadfastly  be- 
hold the  face  of  Moses  for  the  glory  of  his  countenance;  which  glory 
was  to  be  done  away  : — How  shall  not  the  ministration  of  the  spirit 
be  rather  glorious  ? — For  if  the  ministration  of  condemnation  be 
glory,  much  more  doth  the  ministration  of  righteousness  exceed  in 
glory.  — For  even  that  which  was  made  glorious  had  no  glory  in  this 
respect,  by  reason  of  the  glory  that  excelleth.  — For  if  that  which 
was  done  away  was  glorious,  much  more  that  which  remaineth  is 
glorious.  — Seeing  then  that  we  have  such  hope,  we  use  great  plain- 
ness of  speech  : — And  not  as  Moses,  which  put  a vail  over  his  fice, 
that  the  children  of  Israel  could  not  steadfastly  look  to  the  end  of 
that  which  is  abolished  : — But  their  minds  were  blinded  ; for  until 
this  day  remaineth  the  same  vail  untaken  away  in  the  reading  of  the 
Old  Testament;  which  vail  is  done  away  in  Christ.  — But  even  unto 
this  day,  when  Moses  is  read,  the  vail  is  upon  their  heart.  — Never- 
theless when  it  shall  turn  to  the  Lord,  the  vail  shall  be  taken  away. 
— Now  the  Lord  is  that  Spirit  : and  where  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is, 
there  is  liberty.  — But  we  all,  with  open  face  beholding  as  in  a glass 
the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  changed  into  the  same  image  from  glory 
to  glory,  even  as  by  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord.” 


The  tliird  cliapter  of  the  Second  Epistle  to  the  Corin- 
thians is  one  long  digression,  and  arose  out  of  the 
necessity  of  explaining  the  apparent  self-sufficiency  and 
boasting  of  the  seventeenth  verse  of  the  second  chapter  ; 
so  it  is  not  till  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  chapter  that 
the  subject  of  the  second  is  taken  up  again. 

ddie  beginning  of  the  third  chaj)ter  seems  but  a reit- 
eration of  this  boasting  ; for  St.  Paul  a))peals  to  his 
work  in  ])roof  of  his  ministry.  True  Christian  work, 
according  to  him,  was  sometliing  written  on  human 
souls.  Men  — the  hearts  and  sj)irits  which  he  had 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


293 


trained  — tliese  were  liis  Epistles  to  the  nations : so 
that,  if  the  world  wanted  to  know  what  St.  Paul  meant 
to  say,  he  replied  — Look  at  the  Corinthian  Church  ; 
that  is  what  I have  to  say:  their  lives  are  my  writings.” 
The  first  three  verses,  then,  are  only  a re-statement  of 
his  vaunt.  But,  then,  he  explains:  The  Corinthians 
araour  Epistle,  yet  not  ours,  but  rather  Christ’s.  Christ 
is  the  Author,  I am  but  the  scribe.  Not  I,  but  the 
Spirit  of  the  living  God,  made  them  what  they  are:  I 
have  only  been  the  minister. 

Hence  he  infers  that  there  was  no  vanity  in  his  asser- 
tion, though  it  looked  like  a boast.  For  the  trust  he 
had  was  not  in  himself — the  writer — but  in  Christ, 
the  Spirit,  the  Author  of  the  work : Such  trust  have 
we  through  Christ  to  God-ward  : not  that  we  are  suf- 
ficient of  ourselves  to  think  anything  as  of  ourselves  ; 
but  our  sufficiency  is  of  God : Who  also  hath  made  us 
able  ministers  of  the  New  Testament.”  Then  it  is  that 
from  these  words  able  minister  ” he  breaks  off  into  a 
digression,  which  occupies  all  the  chapter,  and  is  de- 
scriptive of  the  Christian  ministry  in  contradistinction 
to  the  Jewish. 

Our  subject  now  is  the  principle  of  the  Christian 
ministry ; that  is,  the  exposition  and  application  of  the 
Word  of  God.  There  are  two  modes  in  which  this  is 
done : — 

I.  That  of  the  Letter. 

II.  That  of  the  Spirit. 

Or  — to  use  more  modern  equivalents  — we  distinguish 
between  the  formal  ministry  and  the  spiritual  one,  — 
between  the  teaching  of  the  Old  Testament  and  that  of 
the  New. 

Let  us  make,  however,  one  preliminary  remark : 
Ours  is  an  exposition  ; and  therefore  we  take  the  sub- 
ject broadly.  Our  object  is  rather  to  get  a comprehen- 
sive view  of  the  Apostle’s  argument,  than  to  pursue  it 
into  every  particular.  Each  separate  sentence  might 
be  the  text  of  a rich  sermon  ; but,  omitting  detail,  we 


294 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


will  confine  onrselves  to  the  main  scope  of  the  chapter  ; 
that  is,  to  the  contrast  we  have  spoken  of  above  : — 

I.  The  mlnistiy  of  the  Letter. 

The  ininistiy  of  Moses  was  one  of  the  Letter;  it 
was  a formal  ministry  — a ministry  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment : for  a formal  ministry,  a ministry  of  the  letter, 
and  a ministry  of  the  Old  Testament,  have  all  the  same 
meaning.  It  was  the  business  of  Moses  to  teach  max- 
ims, and  not  principles  ; rules  for  ceremonial,  and  not 
a spirit  of  life.  And  these  things  — rules,  ceremonials, 
maxims,  law  — are  what  the  Apostle  calls  here  the 

letter. Thus,  for  instance.  Truth  is  a principle, 
springing  out  of  an  inward  life  ; but  Moses  only  gave 
the  rule  : Thou  shalt  not  forswear  thyself.”  It  is  im- 
possible not  to  see  how  plainly  Inadequate  this  rule  is 
to  all  that  truth  requires  ; for  he  who  scarcely  avoided 
perjury  may  have  kept,  nevertheless,  to  the  letter  of  the 
law  ! Again,  love  is  a principle  ; but  Moses  said  sim- 
ply : Thou  shalt  not  kill,  nor  steal,  nor  injure.” 
Again,  Meekness  and  subduedness  before  God  — these 
are  of  the  Spirit ; but  Moses  merely  commanded  fasts. 
And,  further.  Unworldliness  arises  from  a spiritual  life : 
but  Moses  only  said,  Be  separate,  circumcise  your- 
selves;”  for,  under  the  Jewish  law,  it  was  separation 
from  the  surrounding  nations  which  stood  in  the  place 
of  Christian  unworldliness. 

It  was  in  consequence  of  the  superiority  of  the  teach- 
ing of  principles  over  a mere  teaching  of  maxims,  that 
the  ministry  of  the  letter  was  considered  as  nothing ; 
and  this  for  two  reasons  : first,  because  of  its  transi- 
toriness, it  was  to  be  done  away  with.” 

Let  us,  then,  look  at  this  in  a real,  practical  way. 
We  say  the  Law  was  superseded  by  the  Gospel.  But 
why?  By  an  arbitrary  arrangement  of  God?  No: 
but  on  an  Eternal  princijde.  And  this  is  the  principle  : 
— All  formal  truth  is  transient:  no  maxim  is  intended 
to  last  for  ever.  No  ceremony,  however  glorious,  how- 
ever l)eantil‘ul,  can  be  eternal  ; so  that,  though  for  the 
time  it  is  a Revelation,  yet  it  cannot  last,  because  it  is 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


295 


less  than  the  whole  truth.  Thus,  when  Christ  came, 
instead  of  saying,  Thou  shalt  not  forswear  thyself,” 
He  said,  Let  your  yea  be  yea,  and  your  nay,  nay  : ” 
so  that  the  same  truth  which  Moses  had  given  in  a lim- 
ited form  was  stated  by  Christ  in  all  its  fulness,  and  the 
old  form  was  superseded  by  the  principle ; and  instead 
of  saying,  Thou  shalt  not  say.  Fool,  or  Raca,”  Christ 
gave  the  principle  of  Love  ; and  instead  of  commanding 
the  devotion  of  the  seventh  part  of  time  to  God,  Chris- 
tianity has  declared  the  sanctification  of  all  time  ; ” 
and  instead  of  a command  to  sacrifice,  that  is,  to  give 
of  your  best,  Christ  says,  Give  yourself  a living  sacri- 
fice to  God.”  In  all  these  things,  observe  how  the 
form  was  superseded  : because  the  higher  Truth  had 
come,  the  Letter  was  done  away.” 

The  second  reason  for  the  inferiority  of  the  Letter 
was  that  it  killed:  partly  because,  being  rigorous  in  its 
enactments,  it  condemned  for  any  non-fulfilment.  In 
the  ninth  verse,  it  is  called  a ministration  of  condem- 
nation.” The  Law  had  no  mercy — it  could  have 
none  ; for  its  duties  were  done  or  not  done ; there  were 
in  it  no  degrees  of  goodness  or  evil : He  that  despised 
Moses’  law  died  without  mercy.”  And  partly  it  killed, 
because  technicalities  and  multiplicities  of  observance 
necessarily  deaden  spiritual  life.  It  was  said  by  Burke, 
that  no  man  comprehends  less  of  the  majesty  of  the 
English  constitution  than  the  Nisi  Prius  lawyer,  who  is 
always  dealing  with  technicalities  and  precedents.”  In 
the  same  way  none  were  so  dead  to  the  glory  of  the 
law  of  God  as  the  scribes,  who  were  always  discussing 
its  petty  minutiae.  While  they  were  disputing  about 
the  exact  manner  in  which  a sacrifice  should  be  slain, 
or  the  precise  distance  of  a Sabbath  day’s  journey,  or 
the  exact  length  of  a phylactery,  how  could  they  com- 
prehend the  largeness  of  the  Spirit  which  said,  I will 
have  mercy,  and  not  sacrifice  ? ” 

This  surely  we  can  understand.  Obedience  is  a large, 
free,  glorious  feeling ; Love  is  an  expansion  of  the 
whole  heart  to  God  ; Devotion  is  an  act  of  the  heart, 
in  which  thought  is  merely  silent.  But  could  anything 


293 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


dull  tlie  vigor  of  Obedience  more  than  frittering  it 
away  in  anxieties  about  the  mode  and  degree  of  fasting? 
Could  aught  chill  Love  more  than  the  question,  ‘‘  How 
often  shall  my  brother  offend,  and  I forgive  him?  ” Or 
could  anything  break  Devotion  — an  exercise  of  mind 
where  heart  should  be  all  in  all  — more  into  fragments, 
than  multiplied  changes  of  posture,  and  turnings  from 
side  to  side  ? Such  were  the  deficiencies  of  the  letter,” 
or  the  ministries  of  the  Old  Testament. 

Now  observe : No  blame  was  attributable  to  Moses 
for  teaching  thus.  St.  Paul  calls  it  a glorious  min- 
istry ; ” and  it  was  surrounded  with  outward  demon- 
strations — with  thunders  and  mighty  signs  — to  prove 
it  so.  The  reason  is,  that  maxims,  rules,  and  ceremo- 
nies have  truth  in  them  : Moses  was  commissioned  to 
teach  truth  so  far  as  the  Israelites  could  bear  it ; not  in 
substance,  but  in  shadows  ; not  principles  by  themselves, 
but  principles  by  rules,  to  the  end  of  which  the  Church 
of  Israel  could  not  as  yet  see.  In  St.  Paul’s  symbolic 
expression,  a veil  was  before  the  lawgiver’s  face  ; it  was 
truth  he  gave,  but  it  was  veiled ; its  lineaments  were 
only  dimly  seen.  These  rules  were  to  hint  and  lead 
up  to  a Spirit,  whose  brightness  would  have  dazzled  only 
the  Israelites  into  blindness  then. 

II.  We  have  now  to  consider  the  Ministry  of  the 
New  Testament. 

1.  It  was  a spiritual  ” ministry  — 

The  Apostles  were  “ ministers  of  the  spirit,”  and  by 
this  St.  Paul  means  ministers  of  that  truth  which  un- 
derlies all  forms,  whether  of  word  or  ceremony.  He 
does  not  say  that  it  was  the  Holy  Spirit,  but  the 
spirit,”  that  is,  the  essence  of  the  Law,  that  the  Apos- 
tles were  to  minister.  Precisely  such  was  Christ’s  own 
dcs(‘rij)tion  of  a wise  expounder  of  the  Word,  when 
He  compares  him  to  a householder  bringing  out  of  his 
treasures  things  new  and  old,’’  declaring  old  princi- 
])les  uu(lc‘r  new  foi’ins.  dlie  mistake  men  make  is  this: 
tliey  would  have  for  ever  the  same  old  words,  the  same 
old  Ibj-ms,  whereas  tliese  are  ever  transient;  intended 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


297 


to  exist  only  as  long  as  they  are  needful,  and  then  to  be 
‘‘  done  away.”  There  are  to  be  new  things,  but  there 
is  still  something  in  the  old  things  which  can  never 
alter — the  spirit  which  underlies  the  words,  the  ancient 
truth  which  creates  the  form  it  dwells  in.  It  is  in  this 
sense  that  Christ  is  the  Spirit  of  the  law,  for  He  is 
‘‘  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness  to  every  one  that 
belie veth.”  And  St.  Paul’s  ministry  to  the  Jews,  and 
to  the  Judaists  among  the  Gentiles,  was  freedom  from 
the  letter  — conversion  to  the  spirit  of  the  law.  Blinded 
as  were  their  minds,  veiled  as  were  their  hearts,  never- 
theless liberty  was  coming.  For  ^‘when  it”  (the  Jewish 
heart)  shall  turn  to  the  Lord,  the  vail  shall  be  taken 
away : now  the  Lordis  that  Spirit.”  Therefore,  to  turn 
to  the  Lord  Christ  was  to  turn  to  the  spirit  instead  of 
the  letter  of  the  law ; and  so  they  would  become  the 
true  Israel,  free,  with  clear  vision : for  where  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  is,  there  is  liberty” — there  is  the 

open  face”  which  reflects  the  glory  of  Christ. 

2.  The  Ministry  of  the  New  Testament  was  a ^Hife- 
giving  ” ministry. 

First,  let  us  touch  on  the  fiOTrative  meaning  of  the 
word  “ life-o;ivin^.”  It  is  like  a new  life  to  know  that 
God  wills  not  sacrifice  and  burnt-offering,  but  rather 
desires  to  find  the  spirit  of  one  who  says,  Lo  ! I come 
to  do  Thy  will.”  It  is  new  life  to  know  that  to  Love 
God  and  man  is  the  sum  of  existence.  It  is  new  life  — 
it  is  free  thought  — to  know  that  God  be  merciful  to 
me  a sinner  ! ” is  a truer  prayer  in  God’s  ears,  than 
elaborate  liturgies  and  long  ceremonials  of  ecclesiastical 
ritual. 

Further:  Christ  was  the  spirit  of  the  law,  and  He 
gave,  and  still  gives,  the  gift  of  Life.  But  how  ? St. 
Paul  replies,  in  the  eighteenth  verse : A living  charac- 
ter is  impressed  upon  us  : we  are  as  the  glass  or  mirror 
which  reflects  back  a likeness,  only  we  reflect  it  livingly ; 
it  does  not  pass  away  from  us  as  the  image  does  from 
the  glass,  but  is  an  imparted  life,  which  develops  itself 
more  and  more  within  us  : for  Christ  is  not  a mere 
example,  but  the  Life  of  the  world ; and  the  Christian 


298' 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


is  not  a mere  copy,  but  a living  image  of  the  living 
God.  He  is  changed  into  the  same  image  from  glory 
to  glory,  even  as  by  the  S})irit  of  the  Lord.” 

Now  such  a ministry  — a ministry  which  endeavors 
to  reach  the  life  of  things  — the  Apostle  calls  (1.)  an 
able  — that  is,  a powerful  — ministry.  Observe,  he 
names  it  thus,  even  amidst  an  apparent  want  of  success. 
For  such  teaching  may  leave  no  visible  fruits.  It  makes 
no  party  or  sect.  Its  minister  may  seem  to  fail,  but 
his  victory  is  sure  ; he  works  powerfully,  deeply,  glori- 
ously. He  moulds  souls  for  the  ages  to  come.  He 
works  for  the  eternal  world. 

(2.)  St.  Paul  calls  it  a bold  ministry  : We  use 
great  plainness  of  speech.”  Ours  should  be  a ministry 
whose  words  are  not  compacted  of  baldness,  but  bold- 
ness ; whose  very  life  is  outspokenness,  and  free  fear- 
lessness : — a ministry  which  has  no  concealment,  no 
reserve ; which  scorns  to  take  a via  media^  because  it  is 
safe  in  the  eyes  of  the  world ; which  shrinks  from  the 
weakness  of  a mere  cautiousness,  but  which  exults 
even  in  failure,  if  the  truth  has  been  spoken,  with  a 
joyful  confidence.  For  a man  who  sees  into  the  heart 
of  things  speaks  out  not  timidly,  nor  superstitiously,  but 
with  a brow  unveiled,  and  with  a speech  as  free  as  his 
spirit : The  truth  has  made  him  free.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


299 


LECTURE  XL. 


1852. 

2 CoRiNTiiiANS,  iv.  1-15.  — “ Therefore  seeing  we  have  this  ministry, 
as  we  have  received  mercy,  we  faint  not;  — But  have  renounced 
the  hidden  things  of  dishonesty,  not  walking  in  craftiness,  nor 
handling  the  word  of  God  deceitfully;  but  by  manifestation  of  the 
truth  commending  ourselves  to  every  man’s  conscience  in  the  sight 
of  God.  — But  if  our  gospel  be  hid,  it  is  hid  to  them  that  are 
lost  : — In  whom  the  god  of  this  world  had  blinded  the  minds  of 
them  which  believe  not,  lest  the  light  of  the  glorious  gospel  of 
Christ,  who  is  the  image  of  God,  should  shine  unto  them.  — For  we 
preach  not  ourselves,  but  Christ  Jesus  the  Lord;  and  ourselves  your 
servants  for  Jesus’  sake.  — For  God,  who  commanded  the  light  to 
shine  out  of  darkness,  hath  shined  in  our  hearts,  to  give  the  light  of 
the  knowledge  of  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.  — 
But  we  have  this  treasure  in  earthen  vessels,  that  the  excellency  of 
the  power  may  be  of  God,  and  not  of  us.  — We  are  troubled  on 
every  side,  yet  not  distressed;  we  are  perplexed,  but  not  in  despair; 
— Persecuted,  but  not  forsaken;  cast  down,  but  not  destroyed;  — 
Always  bearing  about  in  the  body  the  dying  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  that 
the  life  also  of  Jesus  might  be  made  manifest  in  our  body.  — For  we 
which  live  are  alway  delivered  unto  death  for  Jesus’  sake,  that  the 
life  also  of  Jesus  might  be  manifest  in  our  mortal  flesh.  — So  then 
death  worketh  in  us,  but  life  in  you.  — We  having  the  same  spirit 
of  faith,  according  as  it  is  written,  I believed,  and  therefore  have  I 
spoken;  we  also  believe,  and  therefore  speak;  — Knowing  that  he 
which  raised  up  the  Lord  Jesus  shall  raise  up  us  also  by  Jesus,  and 
shall  present  us  with  you.  — For  all  things  are  for  your  sakes,  that 
the  abundant  grace  might  through  the  thanksgiving  of  many  re- 
dound to  the  glory  of  God.” 

The  first  two  verses  of  this  chapter  contain  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  Christian  ministry : they  embrace  its 
motives  — a sense  of  mercy  and  a sense  of  hope  : they 
declare  its  straightforwardness,  its  scorn  of  craft  and 
secrecy,  its  rejection  of  pious  frauds  and  adroit  casuistry  ; 
and  they  show  that  its  influence  is  moral,  and  not  offi- 
cial. Hence  it  becomes  clear  that  its  indirect  was  more 
sure  than  its  direct  influence. 

Now  the  connection  of  these  two  verses  with  the 
third,  is  through  the  word  every.”  For  a reply  sug- 


300 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTJ.ES 


gested  itself  to  St.  Paul’s  mind  from  some  ol)i(‘rtor; 

Every  man’s  conscience  lias  not  acknowledged  the 
truth  of  the  message,  nor  tlie  heavenly  sincerity  of  the 
messengers.”  To  which  the  Apostle  answers,  The  ex- 
ceptions do  not  weaken  the  trntli  of  the  general  asser- 
tion : to  every  man  whose  heart  is  in  a healthy  state  — 
to  all  but  the  blinded  — the  Gospel  is  God’s  Light ; 
and  those  to  whom  it  is  not  Light  are  themselves  dark, 
for  the  obscurity  is  in  themselves,  and  not  in  the  truth. 
And  then,  having  replied  to  this  objection,  St.  Paul 
proceeds  with  the  same  subject  — the  Apostolic  Minis- 
try. lie  represents  it  under  two  main  aspects : — 

I.  As  a Ministry  of  Light. 

II.  As  a reflection,  in  word  and  experience  of  the 
Life  of  Christ. 

I.  Let  us  glance  at  the  fourth  and  sixth  verses  : the 
light  of  the  glorious  Gospel : ” God,  who  commanded 
the  light  to  shine  out  of  darkness,  hath  shined  in  our 
hearts,  to  give  the  light  of  the  knowledge  of  the  glory 
of  God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.”  Compare  with 
this  what  St.  John  says  in  the  opening  chapter  of  his 
Gospel : The  light  shineth  in  darkness,  and  the  dark- 

ness comprehended  it  not.”  Nothing  could  be  more 
different  than  the  minds  of  St.  Paul  and  St.  John  ; and 
yet  how  remarkably  they  coincide  in  this  thought  — 
they  both  call  Revelation,  Light ! ” According  to  St. 
John,  to  live  in  sin  was  to  live  in  darkness;  it  was  a 
false  life  — a life  of  lies  — in  which  a man  was  untrue 
to  his  own  nature.  According  to  St.  Paul,  it  Avas  to 
live  in  blindness  — blinded  by  the  god  of  this  Avorld.” 
Put  both  Apostles  concur  in  representing  Revelation  as 
simply  the  unveiling  of  the  truth  : the  manifestation  of 
things  as  they  are.  This  is  strikingly  shown  in  St. 
Paul’s  metaphor:  For  God,  Avho  commanded  the 

light  to  sliine  out  of  darkness,  hath  shined  in  our  hearts, 
to  give  the  light  of  the  knowledge  of  the  glory  of  God 
in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.’’  As  on  the  darkness  of 
the  ])hysical  world,  light  rose  at  the  Eternal  “ Be,” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


301 


and  all  things  appeared  as  they  were,  not  a creation, 
but  a manifesta.tion  — and  yet,  in  truth,  a real  creation 
(as  but  for  light  this  world  were  as  if  it  were  not,  since 
it  is  what  it  is  in  consequence  of  light)  : so,  on  the  moral 
darkness  of  a world  in  sin  and  ignorance,  the  light  of 
revealed  truth  showed  things  as  they  are,  and  exhibited 
them  in  their  true  relative  proportions.  That  revela- 
tion created,  indeed,  a new  world,  which  yet  was  not  a 
creation  of  things  that  had  not  existed  before : for  the 
Gospel  did  not  make  God  our  Father  ; it  revealed  what 
He  had  ever  been,  is,  and  ever  shall  be  ; it  disclosed 
Him,  not  as  a tyrant,  but  as  a Father : not  as  a chance, 
or  a fate  ; not  as  a necessary  thing ^ but  as  a Person  ; 
and  in  the  Life  of  Christ,  the  Love  of  God  has  become 
intelligible  to  us.  The  Gospel  threw  light  on  God  : 
light  unknown  before,  even  to  the  holiest  hearts  among 
the  Jews.  Clouds  and  darkness  are  the  habitation  of 
His  seat,”  spoke  the  Old  Testament : God  is  Light, 
and  in  Him  is  no  darkness  at  all,”  declared  the  New. 
For,  out  of  Christ,  our  God  is  only  a dark,  dim,  and 
dreadful  mystery.  There  is  only  an  awful  silence, 
which  is  never  broken  by  an  articulate  voice.  But  all 
is  brightness  in  the  Redeemer’s  life  and  death. 

The  Gospel  threw  light,  too,  upon  man’s  own  nature. 
Man  — a dark  enigma,  a contradiction  to  himself,  with 
god-like  aspirations  and  animal  cravings  — asks  his  own 
heart  in  terror,  Am  I a god  or  beast  ? ” And  the 
Gospel  answers  : You  are  a glorious  temple  in  ruins, 
to  be  rebuilt  into  a habitation  of  God  and  the  Spirit, 
your  soul  to  be  the  home  of  the  High  and  Holy  One, 
your  body  to  be  the  temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost.”  It 
threw  light  upon  the  grave  ; for  ‘‘  life  and  immortality  ” 
were  brought  to  light  through  the  Gospel.”  The 
darkness  of  the  tomb  was  irradiated  ; and  the  things 
of  that  undiscovered  land  shone  clear  and  tranquil  then 
to  the  eye  of  faith : but  not  until  then^  for  before,  im- 
mortality was  but  a mournful  perhaps. 

Now  there  are  three  practical  deductions  from  this 
view  of  Truth. 

1.  As  to  ministerial  conduct.  Our  life  is  to  be  a 
26 


302 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


manifestation  of  the  Gospel.  Observe  St.  Paul’s  argu- 
ment: — We  do  not  tamper  with  the  Word  of  God. 
It  is  not  concealed  or  darkened  by  us  ; for  our  very 
work  is  to  spread  light,  to  throw  sunshine  on  every  side, 
and  in  every  way  fearlessly  to  declare  the  truth,  to 
dread  no  consequences : for  no  real  minister  of  Christ 
can  be  afraid  of  illumination. 

2.  Light  is  given  to  us  that  we  may  spread  it.  ‘‘•We 
preach  . . . ourselves  your  servants  for  Jesus’  sake.  For 
God  . . . hath  shined  in  our  hearts.”  If  He  has  illumi- 
nated us,  then  we  are  your  servants,  to  give  you  this 
illumination.  We  should  be  as  a city  set  on  a hill  ; ” 
as  the  salt  which  penetrates  and  purifies  the  earth  : Ye 
are  the  light  of  the  world.”  This  St.  Paul  felt  vividly  : 
St.  Paul  who  had  himself  been  in  darkness  ; and  shall 
we  refuse  to  feel  it  ? we,  who  have  had  ages  of  light, 
which  St.  Paul  had  not?  Our  more  open  heaven 
seems  to  shut  us  out  from  feeling  this.  Perhaps  we, 
who  have  been,  or  fancy  ourselves  to  have  been,  in  the 
brightness  of  his  revelation  all  our  lives,  scarcely  appre- 
ciate the  necessity  which  he  felt  so  strongly  of  commu- 
nicating it. 

3.  It  is  the  evil  heart  which  hides  the  truth.  Light 
shines  on  all^  that  is,  all  who  are  in  a natural  human 
state,  all  who  can  feel,  all  who  have  not  deadened  the 
spiritual  sense.  It  is  not  the  false  life  which  can  know 
the  truth,  but  the  true  life  receives  what  is  akin  to 
it : for  every  one  that  is  of  the  truth  heareth  my 
voice.” 

Thus  observe  — what  are  the  evidences  of  Chris- 
tianity.” The  evidences  of  Christianity  ” are  — 
Christianity.  The  evidence  of  the  sun  is  its  light,  and 
not  the  shadow  on  the  dial.  So  Christ  is  divine  to 
those  who  are  of  the  truth.  To  some  persons  He  is 
not  the  image  of  God.  How  will  you  prove  to  such 
tliat  He  is  ? Is  it  by  arguing  about  miracles  and 
j)ro[)he(^y  ? Is  it  by  discussion  about  the  true  reading 
ot*  texts,  or  by  recpiiriiig  belief  on  the  authority  of  the 
Church  ? No.  It  is  by  means  of  a right  heart:  it  is 
by  means  of  God’s  Spirit  ruling  in  the  heart.  These, 


TO  THE  CORINTIIIAXS. 


803 


and  these  alone,  will  disclose  Christ  to  a man  ; for 
‘‘  no  man  can  say  that  Jesus  is  Lord,  but  by  the  Holy 
Ghost ; ” and  again  : The  natural  man  receiveth  not 
the  things  of  the  Spirit  of  God,”  and  for  this  reason  — 
‘‘  they  are  spiritually  discerned.” 

Again,  it  is  the  worldly  heart  which  hides  the  truth. 

The  god  of  this  world  hath  blinded  the  minds  of 
them  which  believe  not.”  An  awful  thought ! The 
light  of  the  glorious  Gospel  ” is  shut  out  by  ourselves 
from  our  lives,  apart  from  immorality,  apart  even  from 
actual  sin.  For  worldliness  is  distinct  from  sin,  and 
the  denunciation  of  it  is  peculiar  to  Christianity.  It 
does  not  consist  in  distinct  acts,  nor  in  thoughts  of 
transgression,  but  it  is  the  spirit  of  a whole  life,  which 
hides  all  that  is  invisible,  real,  and  eternal,  because  it  is 
devoted  to  the  visible,  the  transient,  and  the  unreal. 
Christ  and  the  world  cannot  exist  in  the  same  heart. 
Men  who  find  their  all  in  the  world  — how  can  they, 
fevered  by  its  business,  excited  by  its  pleasures,  petrified 
by  its  maxims,  see  God  in  his  purity,  or  comprehend 
the  calm  radiance  of  Eternity  ? 

II.  The  Apostle  represents  the  Ministry  as  a reflec- 
tion, in  word  and  experience,  of  the  Life  of  Christ. 

1.  In  word.  Let  us  compare  the  second  verse  with 
the  thirteenth.  We  manifest  the  truth,  ‘‘  commending 
ourselves  to  every  man’s  conscience,”  because  we  speak 
in  strong  belief.  The  minister  of  Christ  speaks  in 
faith ; that  is,  in  a firm  conviction  of  Divine  power 
arising  from  the  Resurrection  — faith  in  the  delivering 
or  redeeming  power  of  God.  Observe  the  difference 
between  this  and  theological  knowledo-e.  It  is  not  a 
minister’s  wisdom,  but  his  conviction^  which  imparts 
itself  to  others.  Nothing  gives  life  but  life.  Real 
flame  alone  kindles  other,  flame : this  was  the  power  of 
the  Apostles : We  believe,  and  therefore  speak  : ” — 
‘‘We  cannot  but  speak  the  things  which  we  have  seen 
and  heard  : ” — “ He  that  saw  it  bare  record,  and  his 
record  is  true : and  he  knoweth  that  he  saith  true,  that 
ye  might  believe.”  Firm  faith  in  what  they  spoke, 


304 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


that  was  the  basis  of  the  Apostles’  strength ; but  in  us 
there  is  one  tiling  wanting — we  only  believe.  If 
we  really  believed  the  truths  we  deliver  week  after 
week,  would  not  our  hearts  be  filled  with  such  deep 
earnestness,  that  the  spectacle  of  men  and  women  list- 
ening unconcernedly  to  the  Gospel  would  sadden  all 
our  days,  and  impel  us  to  preach  as  if  we  should  never 
preach  again  ? 

In  the  fifth  verse,  St.  Paul  says  he  preaches  Christ, 
and  not  himself.  Rescue  this  expression  from  all  party 
interpretations,  and  the  minister  will  understand  that 
he  is  to  preach,  not  the  Christ  of  this  sect  or  that  man, 
but  Christ  fully  — Christ  our  Hope,  our  Pattern,  our 
Life  — Christ  in  us,  the  light  which  is  in  every  man 
subjectively  ; and  Christ  the  Light  which,  shining  ob- 
jectively in  His  Life,  and  Death,  and  Resurrection, 
daily  increases,  as  we  gaze,  the  Light  of  the  Christ 
within  us. 

2.  The  Ministry  is  a reflection  of  Christ’s  Life  in 
experience.  It  might  be  a matter  of  surprise,  that 
God’s  truth  should  be  conveyed  through  such  feeble 
instruments  — men,  whom  the  axe  and  the  lion 
could  destroy.  Well,  the  Apostle  acknowledges  that 
it  is  so.  He  calls  them  earthen  vessels  : ” he  knows 
them  to  be  but  fragile  receptacles  of  this  treasure.” 
But  this  very  circumstance,  instead  of  proving  that  the 
Gospel  is  not  of  God,  proves  that  it  is.  For  what  was 
the  life  of  these  men,  but  the  Life  of  Christ  over  again 
— a Life  victorious  in  defeat?  I fill  up,”  says  St. 
Paul,  that  which  is  behind  of  the  afflictions  of  Christ:  ” 

Always  bearing  about  in  the  body  the  dying  of  the 
Lord  Jesus,  that  the  life  also  of  Jesus  might  be  made 
manifest  in  our  body.”  So  that,  in  their  suffer- 
ings, the  Apostles  represented  the  death  of  Christ,  and 
in  tlieir  incredible  escapes.  His  resurrection.  Figura- 
tively speaking,  their  esca})es  were  as  a resurrection. 
Comf)are  the  word  resurrection^  used  in  the  sense  of 
escape,  in  the  eleventh  chapter  of  Hebrews,  at  the 
thirty-fUth  verse.  One  might  almost  say  that  the 
Apostles  bore  a charmed  life  — a mystic  resemblance 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


305 


to  their  Lord : an  existence  which  rose,  like  the  fabled 
phoenix,  into  fresher  being  from  its  ashes. 

Christ,  then,  is  the  mystic  symbol  of  Christian  life  : 
His  death  and  His  resurrection  are  repeated  in  His 
people.  Only  with  exquisite  truthfulness,  and  in  op- 
position to  all  one-sided  exaggeration,  St.  Paul  observes, 
that  in  some  Christians  the  death  was  more  exhibited, 
in  others  the  Resurrection : So  then  death  worketh 
in  us,  but  life  in  you.”  For  there  are  various  types  of 
the  Divine  life,  as,  for  example,  in  Christ  and  in  John 
the  Baptist.  It  takes  effect  sometimes  on  the  side  of  the 
Cross,  sometimes  on  the  side  of  the  Resurrection.  In  dif- 
ferent periods  of  the  same  life,  in  different  ages  of  freedom 
or  persecution  — as  we  have  known  in  the  depressed 
Church  of  the  Albigenses  and  the  victorious  Church  of 
England  — in  different  persons  during  the  same  age, 
the  Cross  and  the  Resurrection  alternate,  and  exist 
together.  But  in  all  there  is  progress — the  decay  of 
evil,  or  the  birth  of  good  ; for  though  our  outward 
man  perish,  yet  the  inward  man  is  renewed  day  by 
day.” 

It  was  in  this  way  that  the  early  Church  followed 
Christ’s  Life,  weekly  and  yearly.  Friday  and  Sunday 
showed  to  them  the  Crucifixion  and  the  Resurrection. 
Good  Friday  and  Easter-day  filled  them  with  sorrow 
and  with  joy.  For  such  is  the  true  Christian  aspect 
of  life.  We  are  not  to  choose  the  Cross  exclusively. 
The  death  and  the  life  of  Christ  are  to  be  manifested 
in  our  mortal  body.  We  are  to  let  things  come  as  God 
pleases,  making  both  joy  and  sorrow  divine,  by  infusing 
into  them  the  Cross  and  the  Resurrection.  We  are  to 
show  Christ  forth  in  our  lives  till  Fie  comes.  He  is  the 
Sun : and  Christian  life  is  as  the  turning  of  the  sunflower 
to  the  Sun.  This  was  the  explanation  of  the  mystery  of 
St.  Paul’s  own  existence  in  the  death  and  resurrection 
of  his  Lord  : he  was  living  Christ  over  again.  Christ 
was  Human  Nature  personified.  In  His  Death,  St. 
Paul  saw  the  frail  Humanity  subject  to  decay ; in 
His  Resurrection,  the  Apostle  saw  human  life  elevated 
into  Divine  existence.  He  was  crucified  through 
26* 


306 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


weakness,  yet  He  livetli  by  the  power  of  God.”  And 
so  St.  Paul  felt  that  every  true  human  soul  must  repeat 
Christ’s  existence.  He  could  bear  to  look  on  liis  own 
decay  ; it  was  but  the  passing  of  the  human  ; and, 
meantime,  there  was  ever  going  on  within  him  tlie 
strengthening  of  the  Divine.  Thus  his  own  contracted, 
isolated  existence  was  gone : it  had  been  absorbed  into 
communion  with  a Higher  life  : it  had  been  dignified 
by  its  union  with  the  Life  of  lives.  Just  as  the  tidal 
pulsations  in  the  estuary,  a few  inches  only  more  or 
less,  are  dignified  by  referring  them  to  tlie  ocean  life 
with  which  they  are  connected,  since  they  repeat  what 
the  sea  performed  a few  hours  before : so  St.  Paul  felt 
himself,  in  connection  with  the  great  sea  of  Humanity 
and  with  God.  Pain  was  sacred,  since  Christ  had  also 
suffered.  Life  became  grand,  when  viewed  as  a repeti- 
tion of  the  Life  of  Christ.  The  Apostle  lived,  always 
bearing  about  in  the  body  the  dying  of  the  Lord  Jesus, 
that  the  life  also  of  Jesus  might  be  made  manifest  in  ” 
his  ‘‘  mortal  flesh.” 


TO  THE  COEINTHIANS. 


307 


LECTURE  XLI. 

1852. 

2 CoBiNTHiANS,  iv.  16-18. — “ For  which  cause  we  faint  not;  but 
though  our  outward  man  perish,  yet  the  inward  man  is  renewed 
day  by  day.  — For  our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a moment, 
worketh  for  us  a far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory  ; 
— While  we  look  not  at  the  things  which  are  seen,  but  at  the  things 
which  are  not  seen  : for  the  things  which  are  seen  are  temporal;  but 
the  things  which  are  not  seen  are  eternal.” 

2 Corinthians,  v.  1-3.  — For  we  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of 
this  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a building  of  God,  an  house 
not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.  — For  in  this  we  groan, 
earnestly  desiring  to  be  clothed  upon  with  our  house  which  is  from 
heaven:  — If  so  be  that  being  clothed  we  shall  not  be  found  naked.” 

In  our  last  lecture  we  viewed  the  Christian  ministry 
as  one  of  Light,  and  as  a reflection  of  the  Life  of  Christ 
in  word  and  in  experience.  To-day  we  consider  — 

I.  The  trials  of  the  Christian  ministry. 

II.  The  consolations  of  the  Christian  ministry. 

I.  Its  trials : — This  is  ground  which  has  been  gone 
over  before.  We  will  glance  at  one  or  two  instances 
of  the  trials  of  modern  missionaries  : I recollect  W eit- 
brecht,  who  recently  died  at  Calcutta  ; — and  well  do  I 
remember  the  description  he  gave  of  the  difficulties 
encountered  by  the  Gospel  missionaries  in  the  East. 
What  a picture  he  drew  of  the  almost  unconquerable 
depression  which  was  produced  by  the  mere  thought  of 
going  back  to  India  : to  struggle  with  the  darkening 
effects  of  universal  idolatry  — with  the  secret  sense  of 
incredulity  in  Christian  Truth,  giving  rise  to  the  ever- 
recurring  doubt — Can  the  Gospel  light  be  only  for 
us  few,  while  countless  myriads  of  the  human  race  still 
walk  in  the  ^ shadow  of  death  ? ’ ” Observe,  too,  the 


808 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


peculiar  class  of  trials  to  be  encountered  in  hot  climates, 
which  intensify  the  passions  of  our  luiman  nature,  and 
render  a resistance  to  opportunities  offered  for  their 
gratification  a difficult  task  indeed.  For  the  martyr 
spirit  is  not  shown  merely  in  physical  suffering. 

Take  another  instance  : — The  dangers  and  escape 
of  the  missionary  Krapf  in  East  Africa.  What  obsta- 
cles did  he  not  encounter  in  his  endeavors  to  effect  a 
chain  of  missions  from  West  to  East  of  that  dreary  con- 
tinent ! now  attacked  by  robbers  in  the  mountains  of 
Bura  ; — and  then  many  days  without  food,  is  forced  at 
last  to  drink  water  from  a musket-barrel,  and  to  eat 
gunpowder ! 

Remember,  too,  the  graves  of  the  Christian  mission- 
aries piled  so  soon  and  so  rapidly  on  the  pestilential  plain 
of  Sierra  Leone  : — remember  Gardiner  at  Terra  del 
Fuego  ; — Clapperton  dying  amid  the  sands  of  Africa 
— the  Landers — Mungo  Park;  — and  you  will  find 
that  the  missionaries  and  pioneers  of  Christianity  still 
encounter  the  same  trials,  the  same  dangers,  from  fam- 
ine, pestilence,  and  the  sword,  of  which  St.  Paul  so 
eloquently  speaks  in  his  Epistles. 

II.  Christian  consolations. 

1.  The  comprehension  of  the  law  of  the  Cross. 

Spiritual  life  is  ours  through  temporary  death  : for 
“ though  our  outward  man  perish,  yet  our  inward  man 
is  renewed  day  by  day.’’  Strength  is  ours  through 
suffering  ; for  our  light  affliction  ....  worketh  for 
us  a far  more  exceeding  and  eternal  weight  of  glory.” 
Thus,  the  law  of  our  Humanity  is  life  out  of  decay  ; the 
type  and  exemplification  of  which  is  the  Cross  of  Christ. 
And  this  is  the  true  soother  of  affliction  — this  one 
steadfast  thought  — the  glory  which  is  being  worked 
out  thereby.  For  pain  and  death  change  their  charac- 
ter according  to  the  spirit  in  which  they  are  viewed, 
just  as  the  amputation  of  a limb  is  quite  as  painful  as 
the  shattei-ing  of  it  by  an  accident ; yet  in  the  one  case 
the  sufferer  shrieks,  in  the  other  bears  it  heroically : 
because  his  will  goes  with  the  operation,  because  he 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


309 


feels  it  is  right,  and  knows  why  it  is  done.  Mark, 
however,  one  distinction  : It  is  not  merely  the  percep- 
tion of  the  law  which  makes  trial  tolerable,  but  a law 
personified  in  One  whom  we  love.  The  law  is,  “ Our 
light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a moment,  worketh  for 
us  glory.”  Stoicism  taught  that:  but  Christianity 
teaches  it  in  the  Person  of  Christ.  The  Cross  is  an 
abstraction  until  clothed  in  flesh  and  blood.  Go  and 
talk  like  a philosopher  to  one  in  suffering : you  get  an 
acknowledgment  of  your  effort,  but  you  have  not 
soothed  the  sufferer.  But  go  and  tell  him  of  the  law 
in  Christ;  tell  him  that  He  has  borne  the  Cross ; and 
there  is  the  peculiar  Christian  feeling  of  comfort,  with 
all  its  tenderness,  humanity,  and  personality . The  law 
of  the  Cross  is  the  truth,  the  rock  truth,  but  only  in  a 
Person.  And  hence  comes  the  hymned  feeling  — how 
much  more  living  than  a philosophy  ! — 

“ Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 

Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee.” 

So  it  is  that  in  the  mere  word  Cross.,  there  is  that  sen- 
timent which  no  other  word  in  the  English  language 
can  supply.  Law  of  self-sacrifice  ? No  : that  is  cold, 
not  dear  to  us,  personal,  living,  like  the  Cross. 

Oh  ! we  live  — not  under  laws,  nor  philosophical  ab- 
stractions, but  under  a Spirit : and  the  true  expression 
of  Christianity  is  “ Christ  in  you,  the  hope  of  glory.” 
Let  us  exemplify  this  from  the  experience  of  missiona- 
ries. How  beautiful  and  touching  is  the  remarkable 
gratitude  of  Gardiner  for  a few  drops  of  water  trickling 
down  a parched  boat’s  side  ! Listen,  too,  to  what  Krapf 
says  : — In  the  sanctuary  of  reason  I find  nothing  but 
discouragement  and  contradiction  ; but  in  the  sanctuary 
of  God  a voice  comes  to  me  and  tells  me  — ‘ Fear  not ; 
death  leads  to  life,  destruction  to  resurrection,  the  de- 
molition of  all  human  undertakings  to  the  erection  of 
the  kingdom  of  Christ.’  ” Observe  how  this  is  the  very 
principle  expounded  last  Sunday.  The  death  and  resur- 
rection — the  law  of  Christian  life  — was  his  strength, 
as  of  old  it  was  St.  Paul’s. 


310 


LECrUKES  OX  THE  EPISTLES 


2.  The  contemplation  of  things  not  seen. 

Two  characteristics  are  mentioned  as  l)elonging  to 
these  things.  They  are,  ‘‘  not  seen,”  and  eternal.” 
Now  what  are  these  things  ? Not  merely  things  un- 
seen because  they  are  hidden  by  distance,  so  that  we 
shall  see  them  hereafter,  and  only  not  now  ; but  they 
are  things  which  are  not  seen,  because  they  never  can 
be  seen.  They  are  not  things  which  are  suj)erior  to 
those  which  are  seen  ; because  though  of  the  same  na- 
ture, the  latter  perish,  while  the  former  last  for  ever. 
They  are  not  houses  which  do  not  decay,  nor  clothes 
which  do  not  wear  out ; but  they  are  things  which  are 
eternal,  because  they  are  not  material.  This  is  the 
essence  of  the  distinction  and  contrast.  The  Right,  the 
True,  the  Just  — these  are  not  seen,  and  never  will  be  : 
they  are  eternal,  but  they  exist  now  as  they  wall  be  for 
ever.  The  Kingdom  of  God  is  not  fixed  in  one  place, 
nor  known  to  the  eye  of  sense  ; it  cannot  come  by 
observation  : ” neither  can  ye  say,  Lo  ! here,”  or 
Lo  ! there,”  for  there  is  no  locality  now",  nor  will 
there  be  for  ever,  for  the  things  which  are  Eternal,  Im- 
mortal, Invisible.  These  are  the  things  of  which  St. 
Paul  says  : Finally,  brethren,  whatsoever  things  are 
true,  whatsoever  things  are  honest,  whatsoever  things 
are  just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever  things 
are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of  good  report ; if 
there  be  any  virtue,  and  if  there  be  any  praise,  think 
on  these  things.”  It  is  the  outward  and  material  things 
that  perish  : it  is  the  inward  that  are  renewed.  Pain  is 
for  time  : guilt  is  for  ever.  Physical  punishment  is  for 
time  ; but  horror  can  never  die  ! Distinguish  well  what 
the  heavenly  is  : because  it  is  not  the  mere  element  of 
Time  that  makes  things  base  or  noble.  A thrill  of 
nerve,  even  if  it  were  to  last  for  ever,  would  not  be 
heavenly.  A home  of  physical  comfort,  even  if  it  were 
to  endure  like  the  Pyramids,  would  be  no  sublimer  than 
one  of  straw  and  rafters.  lUit  the  everlasting  Heaven 
of  God’s  saints  is  around  us  now.  The  invisible  world 
contenn)lated  by  the  martyrs  is  wdiat  it  w"as,  and  ever 
W'ill  be  — visible  only  to  faith. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


311 


8.  The  thought  of  a life  beyond  the  grave. 

Take  this  in  connection  with  the  sixteenth  verse  of 
the  fourth  chapter,  with  this  thought  in  our  hearts  : 
‘‘  For  which  cause  we  faint  not ; though  our  outward 
man  perish,  yet  the  inward  man  is  renewed  day  by 
day.”  Some  men  there  are  to  whom  this  hope  is  im- 
possible. There  are  some  who  live  a merely  human 
life  : and  life  merely  as  such,  since  it  does  not  necessa- 
rily imply  immortality,  produces  no  inward  certainty  of 
an  existence  beyond  the  grave.  There  are  those  who 
lead  the  life  of  the  ephemeron,  in  whom  there  is  noth- 
ing immortal,  spending  their  days  like  the  beasts  that 
perish  — nay,  less  fitted  for  eternity  than  they.  No 
deep  thoughts,  no  acts  fought  out  on  deep  abiding 
principles,  have  been  theirs.  They  live  mere  acci- 
dental beings,  light  mortals,  who  dance  their  giddy 
round  above  the  abysses,  looking  at  the  things  seen, 
with  transient  tears  for  sorrow,  and  transient  smiles  for 
joy.  This  life  is  their  All ; and  at  last  they  have  flut- 
tered out  their  time,  and  go  forth  into  endless  night. 
Why  not  ? what  is  there  in  them  that  is  not  even  now 
perishing.  But  St.  Paul,  beset  by  persecution,  the 
martyr  of  the  Cross,  daily  flying  for  his  life,  in  perils 
by  land  and  sea,  drew  immortal  comforts  out  of  all  his 
trials.  Every  sorrow  gave  him  a keener  sight  of  the 
things  invisible.  Every  peril,  every  decay  of  the  out- 
ward, strengthened  in  him  that  inward  man  risen 
with  Christ,”  which*  is  the  earnest  of  our  immortal  life. 
With  this  hope  he  was  comforted,  and  with  this  eternal 
existence  growing  within  him,  he  was  buoyed  up  above 
the  thought  of  weakness  or  of  dismay.  A time  would 
come  when  all  should  be  changed  : this  earthly  house 
should  be  dissolved  ; but  he  fainted  not : for  he  says, 

We  know  that  . . . ; we  have  a building  of  God,  an 
house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.” 
The  hope  of  immortal  life  was  his,  and  with  that  he  was 
consoled. 

That  hope  was  not  a selfish  one.  There  are  some 
who  say  that  to  live  a high  life  here,  in  the  hope  of 
immortality  hereafter,  is  an  unworthy  object ; that  it  is 


312 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


more  noble  to  do  good,  find  to  act  well,  and  be  content 
to  perish.  Strange  perversion  ! Is  tlie  desire  of  food, 
for  the  sake  of  food,  selfish  ? Is  the  desire  of  knowledge, 
for  the  sake  of  knowledge,  selfish  ? No  ! they  are  appe- 
tites each  with  its  appointed  end  : one  a necessary  appe- 
tite of  the  body,  the  other  a noble  apjietite  of  the  mind. 
Then,  is  the  desire  of  immortal  life,  for  the  sake  of 
more  life  and  fuller,”  selfish  ? No  ! rather  it  is  the 
noblest,  purest,  truest  appetite  of  the  soul.  It  is  not 
happiness  nor  reward  we  seek ; but  we  seek  for  the 
perfection  of  the  imperfect  — for  the  deep,  abounding 
life  of  those  who  shall  see  God  as  He  is,  and  shall  feel 
the  strong  pulsations  of  that  existence  which  is  Love, 
Purity,  Truth,  Goodness  : to  whom  shall  be  revealed 
all  the  invisible  things  of  the  Spirit  in  perfection ! 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


313 


LECTURE  XLII. 

1852. 

2 ConiNTHiANS , Y.  4-11.  — “ For  we  that  are  in  this  tabernacle 
do  groan,  being  burdened  : not  for  that  we  would  be  unclothed, 
but  clothed  upon,  that  mortality  might  be  swallowed  up  of  life.  — 
Now  he  that  hath  wrought  us  for  the  selfsame  thing  is  God,  who 
also  hath  given  unto  us  the  earnest  of  the  Spirit.  — Therefore  we 
are  always  confident,  knowing  that,  whilst  we  are  at  home  in  the 
body,  we  are  absent  from  the  Lord  : — (For  we  walk  by  fiiith,  not 
by  sight :)  — We  are  confident,  I say , and  willing  rather  to  be  absent 
from  the  body,  and  to  be  present  with  the  Lord.  — Wherefore  we  la- 
bor, that,  whether  present  or  absent,  we  may  be  accepted  of  him.  — 
For  we  must  all  appear  before  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ;  that 
every  one  may  receive  the  things  done  in  his  body , according  to  that 
he  hath  done,  whether  it  be  good  or  bad.  — Knowing  therefore  the 
terror  of  the  Lord,  we  persuade  men;  but  we  are  made  manifest 
unto  God ; and  I trust  also  are  made  manifest  in  your  consciences.  ’ ’ 

In  the  preceding  verses  St.  Paul  has  spoken  of  two 
great  consolations  in  ministerial  trial  — the  thought  of 
things  invisible,  and  the  expectation  of  a blessed  resur- 
rection. In  considering  them,  I tried  to  explain  what 
things  invisible  are  ; and  I said  they  were  not  things 
unseen  because  separated  by  distance,  or  by  reason  of 
tlie  imperfection  of  our  faculties,  or  of  any  interposed 
veil ; but  they  were  unseen,  because  in  their  nature 
‘they  were  incapable  of  being  seen  — such  as  Honor, 
Truth,  and  Love.  I tried  to  show  how  the  expectation 
of  immortality  is  not  a selfish  hope,  because  it  is  not  the 
desire  of  enjoyments  such  as  we  have  here,  but  the 
desire  of  a limher  inward  life  — an  house  not  made 

o 

with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.” 

But  here  evidently  a mistake  might  arise.  Speaking 
thus  of  a spiritual  heaven,  it  is  quite  possible  that  men 
might  conceive  of  it  as  a disembodied  state,  and  suppose 
the  Apostle  to  represent  life  in  a visible  form  as  degra- 
dation. There  were  such  persons  in  the  old  time,  who 
27 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


31  1 

thought  they  could  not  cultivate  their  spirit-nature  with- 
out lowering  that  of  their  body.  They  fasted  and  wore 
sackcloth,  they  lay  in  ashes,  and  eschewed  cleanliness  as 
too  great  a luxury.  Nay,  they  even  refused  to  hear  of 
a resurrection,  which  would  restore  the ^ body  to  the 
spirit:  redemption  being,  according  to  them,  release 
from  the  prison  of  the  flesh. 

In  opposition  to  such  views  the  Apostle  here  says, 
correctively : Not  for  that  we  would  be  unclothed, 

but  clothed  upon,  that  mortality  might  be  swallowed 
up  of  life.”  That  is,  it  is  not  that  we  are  to  get  rid  of 
something,  but  to  gain  something.  Not  the  lowering 
of  the  body,  but  the  strengthening  of  the  spirit  — that 
is  spirituality.  For  there  are  two  extremes  into  which 
men  are  apt  to  run  : they  either  serve  the  body  as  a 
master,  or  crush  it  as  an  enemy.  Whereas  St.  Paul 
taught  that  the  true  way  of  mortifying  the  flesh  is  to 
strengthen  the  spirit.  The  mortal  will  disappear  in  the 
elevation  of  the  immortal. 

Here,  then,  we  have  — first:  A test  of  spirituality. 
Let  us  observe  the  description  given : We  that  are  in 
this  tabernacle  do  groan,  being  burdened.”  If  we  stop 
here,  myriads  deserve  the  name  of  spiritual  men  : for 
who  has  not  groaned,  being  burdened,  in  this  taber- 
nacle ? Disappointment  may  sicken  a man  of  living, 
or  the  power  of  enjoyment  may  fail,  or  satiety  may  ar- 
rive to  the  jaded  senses  and  feelings  : or,  in  pain  and 
poverty  a man  may  long  for  the  grave ; or  old  age  may 
come,  when  the  grasshopper  is  a burden.”  For  ex- 
ample, Job  uttered  maledictions  on  the  day  when  he 
was  born  : Wherefore  is  light  given  to  him  that  is  in 
misery,  and  life  unto  the  bitter  in  soul ; which  long  for 
death,  but  it  cometh  not ; and  dig  for  it  more  than  for 
hid  treasures  ; which  rejoice  exceedingly,  and  are  glad, 
when  they  can  find  the  grave?  If,  then,  the  mere  de- 
sire to  be  unclothed  were  spirituality,  that  passionate 
imprecation  of  Job’s  was  s])iritual.  But  St.  Paul’s 
feeling  was  : ^‘Not  for  that  we  would  be  unclothed,  but 
clothed  upon,  that  mortality  might  be  swallowed  up  of 
lif(L'’  With  him  a desin'  to  depart  and  to  be  with 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


315 


Christ  implied  a yearning  for  a higher  spiritual  life,  and 
a deeper  longing  for  more  resemblance  to  the  mind  of 
Christ. 

Secondly : The  principle  of  Christian  assurance. 

First  of  all,  there  is  such  a thing  as  Christian  assur- 
ance : Therefore  we  are  always  confident : ” and 
again,  I know  whom  I have  believed  : ” and  again, 

We  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of  this  tabernacle 
were  dissolved,  we  have  a building  of  God,  an  house 
not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.”  Such 
was  St.  Paul’s  assurance.  We  may  not  feel  it ; but, 
my  brethren,  we  must  not  lower  the  standard  of  Chris- 
tian attainment  to  suit  our  narrow  lives.  To  many  of 
us  Heaven  is  an  awful  peradventure.  It  is  so  to  most 
men  who  are  livino;  in  comfort,  and  are  not  suffering 
for  Christ.  But  to  St.  Paul,  ever  on  the  brink  of  that 
world  to  come,  his  own  immortality  of  blessedness  was 
no  peradventure.  It  was  not  a matter  of  doubt  with 
him  whether  he  was  Christ’s  or  not.  Let  us,  then,  see 
the  grounds  of  this  assurance. 

1st.  God’s  purpose  : He  that  hath  wrought  us  for 

the  selfsame  thing  is  God.” 

2d.  God’s  Spirit  in  the  soul  — an  earnest.” 

1.  God’s  purpose.  — St.  Paul  would  not  believe  that 
God  was  merely  weighing  His  frail  creatures  in  the  bal- 
ance. No  : they  were  purposed  by  Him  for  heaven  ; 
God  meant  their  blessedness  : For  God  hath  not  ap- 
pointed us  to  wrath,  but  to  obtain  salvation.”  He  had 
redeemed  them  by  the  blood  of  an  everlasting  cove- 
nant : If  when  we  were  enemies,  we  were  reconciled 
to  God  by  the  death  of  His  Son,  much  more,  being 
reconciled,  we  shall  be  saved  by  His  life.”  Our  salva- 
tion does  not  hang  on  our  own  desires  : it  is  in  the 
hands  of  One  who  loves  us  better  than  we  love  our- 
selves. 

2.  God’s  Spirit  in  the  soul  — an  earnest.” 

Here,  in  another  form,  is  the  repetition  of  St.  Paul’s 
view,  that  the  literal  resurrection  is  naturally,  in  the 
order  of  grace,  but  a development  of  the  spiritual  resur- 
rection. To  repeat  the  simile  I have  previously  used : 


318 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


As  the  vital  force  appears  in  thino;s  so  different  as  leaf, 
flower,  and  fruit,  so  the  Divine  life  manifests  itself  first 
in  the  spiritual,  and  then  in  the  literal  resurrection. 
And  just  as  when  the  flower  a])f)ears,  you  infer  the 
future  fruit,  excluding  the  possibility  of  a blight,  so 
when  spiritual  goodness  appears,  you  infer  future  glory. 
This  is  Christian  assurance.  Therefore,  if  God’s  Spirit 
be  in  you,  be  confident,  yet  humble  : rejoice  with  trem- 
bling, but  still  with  unshaken  trust  in  coming  blessedness. 

Hence  Christian  life  becomes  now  a life  of  faith  : 

We  walk  by  faith,  not  by  sight.”  There  is  a life 
called  in  Scripture  a life  hid  with  Christ  in  God.” 
Now  it  is  very  easy  to  speak  glibly  and  fluently  of  that 
life  as  a common  thing.  I cannot  bring  my  lips  to  use 
such  language.  It  is  a rare  and  wondrous  life  ; and  so, 
in  speaking  of  it,  I prefer  to  contemplate  the  life  of  St. 
Paul,  instead  of  assuming  the  existence  of  ordinary 
men  to  be  such  as  is  here  described.  A life  like  his  — 
was  it  not  indeed  hidden  with  his  Master  in  the  heavens  ? 
He  was  ever  on  the  brink  of  the  grave.  To  him  the 
world  was  crucified.  He  had  unlearned  the  love  of  this 
life  by  an  intense  desire  of  another.  The  Cross  of 
Christ  was  all  that  to  him  seemed  beautiful ; so  that 
this  present  existence  became  a kind  of  banishment 
(v.  6)  — a place  of  sojourn,  and  not  a home.  He 
moved  on,  free  from  incumbrances,  ever  ready  to  de- 
part and  to  be  with  Christ.” 

The  thought  of  such  a life  has  in  it  something  very 
awful  and  sublime.  It  is  almost  fearful  to  think  of  a 
liuman  being  really  living  as  St.  Paul  did,  breathing 
the  atmosphere  of  heaven  while  yet  on  earth.  But  I 
remark  it  now  for  this  purpose  : to  remind  you  that  the 
words  of  St.  Paul  cannot  be,  except  with  shocking  un- 
reality, adopted  by  persons  who  are  living  less  spiritu- 
ally tlian  he  did.  There  is  a common,  but  I think 
most  dangerous  habit  of  using  Scripture  language 
lamiliarly,  calling  one-self  the  chief  of  sinners,” 
talking  of  sj)iritnal  joys  and  experiences,”  and  of 
‘^communion  with  (iod  : ” of  ‘Miving  by  laith,”  and 
of  this  pilgrim  life.”  On  many  lips  these  are  weak 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


317 


and  false  expressions.  It  is  like  using  Goliath’s  armor, 
and  thinking  that  thereby  we  get  a giant’s  strength  ; 
while  so  lonor  as  we  are  not  strong,  such  armor  would 
only  weaken  us.  And  so,  the  fact  of  our  using  Scrip- 
ture does  not  make  us  more  spiritual : nay,  it  makes  us 
less  so,  if  it  hides  from  us  our  weakness  — if,  while  using 
the  language  of  a spiritual  giant,  we  forget  that  we  are 
dwarfs.  No,  my  brethren  : a life  of  faith  is  a grand, 
solitary,  awful  thing.  Who  amongst  us  is  living  it? 

Hence,  too,  Christian  life  is  a toil  (v.  9)  : — We 
labor.”  In  the  original  it  is  a strong  word — are 
zealous,  put  forth  all  our  efforts.”  For  St.  Paul 
worked,  knowing  the  night  was  coming.  He  strove 
— ‘‘  ever  as  in  his  great  Task-master’s  eye.”  And 
the  motives  for  this  toil  were  two  : — 

1.  To  please  God. 

2.  To  be  prepared  for  judgment. 

1.  To  no  man  did  life  present  itself  so  strongly  in 
the  light  of  a scene  for  work  as  it  did  to  St.  Paul. 
That  spirit  which  characterized  his  Master  was  remarka- 
ble in  him.  What  was  the  Spirit  of  Christ  ? must 
work  the  works  of  him  that  sent  me,  while  it  is  day  : ” 

I have  a baptism  to  be  baptized  with  ; and  how  am  I 
straitened  till  it  be  accomplished  ! ” My  meat  is  to  do 
the  will  of  my  Father  which  sent  me,  and  to  finish  His 
work.”  And  this  He  did  completely  ; at  the  close  he 
says,  “ I have  finished  the  work  which  Thou  gavest  me 
to  do.”  This  spirit  was  also  in  St.  Paul.  But  now  ob- 
serve, this  work  was  with  him  not  a dire  necessity,  but 
a blessed  privilege ; for  he  says  : And  I will  very 
gladly  spend  and  be  spent.”  It  was  not  the  service  of 
the  slave : it  was  the  joyous  service  of  the  freeman : 

We  are  confident : wherefore  we  labor,  that,  whether 
present  or  absent,  we  may  be  accepted  of  him.”  He 
was  not  working  to  win  life,  but  because  he  had  life ; 
he  was  laboring  in  love  to  please  God. 

2.  The  second  motive  was  the  feeling  of  accounta- 
bility (v.  10)  : We  must  all  appear  before  the  judg- 
ment seat  of  Christ.”  Now  this  feeling  of  accountability 

21* 


318 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


may  assume  citlier  of  two  forms.  In  a free  and  gen- 
erous spirit,  it  may  be  simply  a sense  of  duty  ; in  a 
slavish  and  cowardly  spirit,  it  will  be  a sense  of  com- 
pulsion ; and  the  moment  the  sense  of  duty  ends,  the 
sense  of  compulsion  begins.  . So  St.  Paul  says  : If  I 
do  this  thing  willingly,  I have  a reward : but  if  against 
my  will,  a dispensation  of  the  Gospel  is  committed  to 
me.”  That  is,  If  I cheerfully  do  it,  the  doing  is 
itself  reward  ; but  if  not,  then  it  lies  on  me  like  an  ob- 
ligation.” This  is  the  difference  between  the  two  feel- 
ings : I ouglit^  or  I mmt ; the  Gospel,  or  the  Law. 
These  feelings  are  repeated  in  every  man  ; for  the  Gos- 
pel and  the  Law  are  not  two  periods  of  history  only, 
but  they  are  two  periods  in  universal  human  experience. 
Where  the  spirit  of  the  Gospel  is  not,  there  the  spirit 
of  the  Law  is.  Hence  the  Apostle  says  : Knowing, 
therefore,  the  terror  of  the  Lord,  we  persuade  men.” 

Consider,  then,  the  terrors  of  the  Judgment.  Re- 
member, St.  Paul  does  not  say  merely  that  he  shall 
receive  according  to  what  he  hath  done  in  the  body, 
but  that  he  shall  receive  the  things  done  — the  very 
self-same  things  he  did  — they  are  to  be  his  punishment. 
To  illustrate  the  Apostle’s  meaning  by  analogy,  future 
retribution  is  the  same  as  here  on  earth.  God’s  pun- 
ishments are  not  arbitrary,  but  natural.  For  example, 
a man  commits  a murder.  It  would  be  an  arbitrary 
punishment  if  lightning  struck  him,  or  an  earthquake 
swallowed  him  up.  The  inhabitants  of  Melita,  seeing 
the  viper  fasten  on  Paul’s  hand,  inferred  that  he  was  a 
murderer.  But  God’s  punishment  for  hatred  and 
murder  is  hardening  of  the  heart.  He  that  shuts  Love 
out,  shuts  out  God.  So  again,  if  a man  seduces  an- 
other weaker  than  himself  into  crime,  the  earth  will 
not  open  as  it  did  for  Dathan  and  Abiram.  But  God 
has  liidden  in  the  man’s  own  heart  the  avenging  law : 
he  bec'omes  a degraded  man  : the  serpent-tempter’s 
curse  is  liis  — U)  go  on  his  belly,  and  eat  dust  all 
the  days  of  his  life.”  Or  again,  some  one  is  ])lunged 
in  |)assionateiiess,  sloth,  sensual  life.  God  will  not 
cr(‘ate  Ji  material  flame  to  burn  the  man  ; the  flame  is 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


819 


spiritual,  is  inward  — a reptile  to  creep  and  crawl,  and 
leave  its  venom  on  his  heart.  He  receives  the  things 
done  in  the  body.  Now,  such  as  that  is  the  law  of 
future  retribution:  ^‘Whatsoever  a man  soweth  ” — 
not  something  else,  but  “ that  shall  he  also  reap  : “He 
which  is  filthy,  let  him  be  filthy  still.”  Such  are  some 
of  the  Scripture  metaphors  to  show  the  personality  of 
future  punishment. 

“ Knowing,  therefore,  the  terror  of  the  Lord,”  says 
St.  Paul,  “ we  persuade  men.”  Striking  words*!  Not 
“ we  terrify,”  not  “ we  threaten,”  but  “ we  persuade.” 
Plere  was  the  difference  between  rhetorical  thunders 
and  the  teaching  of  one  who  knew  and  believed  the 
terrors  of  which  he  spoke.  Oh  ! contrast  with  this  the 
tone  in  which  God’s  ministers  too  often  threaten  sin- 
ners. They  paint  the  torments'  of  the  lost  minutely 
and  hideously,  and  can  yet  go  home  to  the  evening 
meal  with  zest  unimpaired.  Think  you,  if  such  a man 
believed  what  he  said  — that  the  mass  of  his  brethren 
were  going  to  hell  — he  could  sleep  after  his  own  de- 
nunciation. No  I when  a man  knows  the  terrors  of 
the  Lord,  he  “ persuades  men.”  Hence  came  the  tears 
of  Jeremiah;  hence  flowed  the  tears  of  Him  who  knew 
the  doom  of  Jerusalem.  Therefore,  if  in  our  tone 
there  be  anything  objurgatory,  denunciatory,  threaten- 
ing, may  God  give  us  the  spirit  to  persuade ! May  He 
teach  us  to  believe  the  terrors  of  which  we  speak  I 

Brethren,  there  is  no  perhaps.  These  are  things 
which  will  be  hereafter.  You  cannot  alter  the  Eternal 
Laws.  You  cannot  put  your  hand  in  the  flame,  and 
not  be  burnt.  You  cannot  sin  in  the  body,  and  escape 
the  sin  ; for  it  goes  inwards,  becomes  part  of  you,  and 
is  itself  the  penalty  which  cleaves  for  ever  and  ever 
to  your  spirit.  Sow  in  the  flesh,  and  you  will  reap 
corruption.  Yield  to  passion,  and  it  becomes  your  ty- 
rant and  your  torment.  Be  sensual,  self-indulgent,  in- 
indolent,  worldly,  hard  — oh  I they  all  have  their  cor- 
responding penalties  : “ Whatsoever  a man  soweth,  that 
shall  he  also  reap.’^ 


320 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XL  III. 


December  5,  1852. 


2 Corinthians  v.  12-17.  — “ For  we  commend  not  ourselves  again 
unto  you,  but  give  you  occasion  to  glory  on  our  behalf,  that  ye  may 
have  somewhat  to  answer  them  which  glory  in  appearance,  and  not 
in  heart. — For  whether  we  be  beside  ourselves,  it  is  to  God  : or 
whether  we  be  sober,  it  is  for  your  cause.  — For  the  love  of  Christ 
constraineth  us  ; because  we  thus  judge,  that  if  one  died  for  all, 
then  were  all  dead  : — And  that  he  died  for  all,  that  they  which  live 
should  not  henceforth  live  unto  themselves,  but  unto  him  which 
died  for  them,  and  rose  again.  — Wherefore  henceforth  know  we  no 
man  after  the  flesh  : yea,  though  we  have  known  Christ  after  the 
flesh,  yet  now  henceforth  know  we  him  no  more.  — Therefore  if  any 
man  be  in  Christ,  he  is  a new  creature  : old  things  are  passed  away; 
behold,  all  things  are  become  new.” 


In  the  preceding  chapters  and  verses,  St.  Paul  has 
been  magnifying  his  ministry.  It  had  been,  he  says, 
a ministry  of  the  Spirit,  not  of  the  letter  (hi.  6).  It 
had  been  straightforward  and  veracious : its  authority 
had  been  that  of  the  truth;  — ‘‘commending  ourselves 
to  every  man’s  conscience  in  the  sight  of  God  ” (iv.  2). 
It  had  been  a suffering  and  a martyr  ministry  (iv.  8,  9, 
10)  ; representative,  too,  of  Christ  in  word  and  deed 
(iv.  5 and  10) ; unworldly,  (v.  2,  8,  9) ; and  persuasive 

In  all  this  the  Apostle  glorifies  his  own  ministry  and 
his  way  of  performing  it.  It  is  a glorious  description, 
truly.  But  when  a man  speaks  thus  of  himself,  we 
are  apt  to  call  it  boasting.  So,  no  doubt,  many  of  the 
Corinthians  would  call  it ; and  hence  St.  Paul  several 
times  anticipates  such  a charge,  for  instance,  in  the  first 
verse  of  the  third  chapter,  and  also  in  the  twelfth  verse 
of  the  fifth.  For  some  of  the  Corinthian  Church  might 
have  reasoned  in  this  manner:  ‘‘  You  say  you  commend 
yourself  to  oiir  consciences,  and  that  we  recognize 
the  truth  of  what  you  say  from  an  inward  plainness. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


321 


Now  if  all  this  is  so  plain,  why  commend  yourself?  — 
why  so  anxious  to  set  yourself  right  ? ” But  the 
reply  is ; I do  not  commend  myself  for  my  own  sake. 
It  is  not  a personal  boast.  It  is  the  only  possible  reply 
to  those  who  require  a ministry  with  splendid  external 
credentials,  instead  of  the  inward  witness  of  the  heart” 
— (v.  12). 

I.  'The  Apostle’s  defence  of  his  self-approval. 

II.  The  general  principles  of  life  with  which  this  self- 
approval was  connected. 

I.  The  Apostle’s  defence  was  founded  on  two  reasons. 
First:  We  give  you  occasion  to  glory  on  our  behalf, 
that  ye  may  have  somewhat  to  answer  them  which 
glory  in  appearance,  and  not  in  heart.”  Secondly : 

Whether  we  be  beside  ourselves,  it  is  to  God : or 
whether  we  be  sober,  it  is  for  your  cause.” 

1.  The  false  teachers  gloried  in  appearance,”  in 
outward  demonstration,  in  dazzling  credentials,  such  as 
eloquence ; or  they  boasted  of  belonging  to  St.  Peter, 
or  prided  themselves  in  a superabundance  of  spiritual 
gifts.  On  the  contrary,  St.  Paul  says  that  the  true 
Apostolic  credentials  are  those  of  the  heart ; and  ac- 
cordingly, the  proofs  he  had  given  were  — his  truth, 
his  sufferings,  his  persuasiveness,  his  simplicity,  his 
boldness,  and  his  life  as  being  an  image  of  Christ’s. 
This  corresponds  with  what  I have  before  said,  namely, 
that  the  Christian  ministry  is  a succession  of  the  pro- 
phetical, not  the  priestly  office.  There  were  two  sorts 
of  teachers,  priests  and  prophets.  The  priest  said : 

Here  are  my  credentials.  I am  ordained  God’s  mes- 
senger : therefore,  what  I say  is  to  be  received.”  The 
prophet  said : What  I say  is  truth ; therefore,  I am 
to  be  receAed  as  from  God.”  The  priest  proved,  first, 
that  he  was  a messenger,  and  thence  inferred  his  in- 
spiration ; but  the  prophet  declared  his  message,  and 
from  it  inferred  that  he  was  truly  sent.  This  is  clear, 
from  the  nature  of  the  thing.  Every  one  knew  who 
was  the  priest.  But  the  prophet  rose  from  amongst 
the  people,  proclaiming  himself  to  be  from  God. 


322 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


‘‘  Where  is  your  proof?  ” was  the  cry  of  all : and  the 
answer  came  — ‘^Here,  in  what  I say.”  Consequently, 
the  priest  was  always  heard  ; the  prophet’s  words  were 
rarely  believed  till  he  was  slain  : and  this  because  men 
glory  in  appearan'ces,  not  in  heart.  Now  St.  Paul’s 
credentials  were  those  of  the  heart ; — ‘‘by  manifesta- 
tion of  the  truth  commending  ourselves  to  every  man’s 
conscience.”  It  was  not,  First,  we  prove  ourselves, 
and  then  our  mission;”  but,  First,  we  declare  our 
message,  and  from  it  we  deduce  our  apostleship.”  This 
is  the  Christian  ministry. 

2.  Whether  we  be  beside  ourselves,  it  is  to  God.” 
Now  Whether  we  be  beside  ourselves  ” means, 

Whether  we  boast  of  ourselves.”  The  vehemence  of 
self-defence  might  be  called  so  in  temporary  excitement. 
The  Apostle’s  defence  might  seem  like  that  of  one 
deranged : as  once  before  it  appeared  to  the  heathen 
Procurator:  “Paul,  thou  art  beside  thyself.”  “ Well,” 
said  St.  Paul,  “ we  adopt  the  words  ‘ beside  ourselves.’ 
Be  it  so  ! it  is  for  God’s  cause.  We  boast  of  our  quali- 
fications for  the  sake  of  God,  to  whom  they  all  belong.” 
Or,  again,  “ Whether  we  be  sober  ” — that  is,  restrain 
ourselves  — our  moderation  is  an  example  of  humility 
to  you. 

There  are,  then,  cases  in  which  it  is  wise  for  a Chris- 
tian to  vindicate  himself  against  false  charges  ; there 
are  others,  in  which  it  is  wiser  to  restrain  himself,  and 
to  remain  silent.  The  Apostle’s  defence,  vehement 
even  so  far  as  to  provoke  the  charge  of  “ being  beside 
himself,”  teaches  us  that  it  is  sometimes  false  humility, 
and  false  moderation,  to  lie  under  an  undenied  slur  on 
our  character  or  our  words.  To  give  another  example : 
Samuel  vindicated  himself : “ Whose  ox  have  I taken  ? 
or  whose  ass  have  I taken  ? or  whom  have  I defrauded  ? 
whom  have  I oppressed  ? or  of  whose  hand  have  I 
re(;cived  any  bribe  to  blind  mine  eyes  therewith  ? and  I 
will  restore  it  to  you.”  For  there  are  charges  which 
must  be  met  by  legal  purgation,  or  by  avowal,  or  by 
denial  ; and  then  we  must  not  hide  nor  denj^  the  gifts 
with  which  God  has  endued  us.  In  such  a case,  to  do  so, 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


823 


is  not  a vain  declaration  of  our  excellence,  but  a graceful 
acknowledgment  of  God’s  mercy : as,  for  example, 
Milton’s  noble  boast. 

On  the  other  hand,  some  charges  are  of  a nature  so 
delicate,  complicated,  and  shadowy,  that  public  defence 
leaves  the  matter  worse  than  before.  It  is  better,  then, 
to  let  time  and  character  defend  you.  For  there  are 
cases  in  which  dignified  silence  is  the  Christian’s  only 
defence.  So  it  was  in  our  Saviour’s  life.  Men  misin- 
terpreted his  words,  and  blackened  his  reputation. 
How  was  He  to  answer  ? Was  He  to  go  into  the  petty 
charges  one  by  one  ? or  was  He  to  leave  time  and  God 
to  defend  His  cause?  He  was  sober  for  ” our  “ cause.” 

H.  The  general  principles  of  Life  with  which  the 
Apostle’s  self-approval  was  connected. 

It  is  the  peculiarity  of  St.  Paul’s  mind  that  he  never 
can  speak  of  an  act  as  an  isolated  thing.  You  always 
find  it  referred  at  once  to  some  great  law,  or  running 
up  into  some  great  principle.  If  he  sees  a detached 
law,  commanding  that  the  ox  shall  not  be  stinted  of  his 
provender,  he  grasps  at  once  the  principle  that  the 
laborer  is  worthy  of  his  hire.”  If  he  forbids  lying,  it  is 
because  we  are  members  one  of  another.”  Here,  too, 
observe  how  high  and  divine  motives  enter  into  the 
smallest  act.  Even  the  Apostle’s  self-defence  was  in 
the  genuine  spirit  of  Christianity : The  love  of 

Christ  constraineth  us.”  All  was  subordinate  to  that. 
Whether  we  are  vehement,  or  whether  we  are  silent,  it 
is  because  His  love  constrains  us.  Remark,  then,  one 
thing  in  passing : it  is  St.  Paul’s  Christianity  : a per- 
vading spirit,  growing  into  a habit,  and  governing  his 
very  words  ! 

Three  subjects,  then,  we  have  for  consideration  : — 

I.  The  main  principle  of  Christian  Life  — Love. 

2.  The  Law  of  redeemed  Humanity. 

3.  The  new  aspect  of  Humanity  in  Christ. 

1.  Love,  the  main  principle  of  Christian  life.  Herein 
consists  Christian  liberty : a Christian  is  freed  from  the 


324  LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 

Law,  and  yet  he  does  what  tlie  Law  requires,  and  more, 
because  his  obedience  is  not  tliat  of  the  letter,  but  the 
spirit ; ’’  as  St.  Paul  says,  the  Christian  is  constrained 
by  love  to  act.  And  why  ? Because  God  has  taught 
him  that  it  is  beautiful  and  right  to  do  so,  and  because 
God  has  made  the  Love  of  Christ  paramount  in  his 
heart  to  all  other  love.  Let  us  make,  therefore,  a dis- 
tinction. When  we  say  that  a Christian  is  free  from 
the  Law,  we  do  not  mean  that  he  may  break  it,  or  not, 
as  he  likes.  We  mean  that  he  is  bound  to  do  right  by 
a nobler  tie  than  you  mustP 

Consider  the  Law  as  expressed  in  the  first,  fifth,  sixth, 
seventh,  and  eighth  commandments,  and  then  examine 
the  relations  in  which  a Christian  is  placed  with  regard 
to  these  commandments.  Hence  the  Apostle  says  : To 
them  that  are  without  law  ” I became  as  without 
law’' — but  he  explains  — being  not  without  law  to 
God,  but  under  the  law  to  Christ.”  And  again  : Be- 
ing then  made  free  from  sin,  ye  became  the  servants  of 
righteousness.” 

Christian  liberty,  then,  is  a loving  servitude  to  God. 
Just  as  if  a slave  were  made  free,  and  then  felt  himself 
bound  in  gratitude  to  toil  with  tenfold  vigor  for  a mas- 
ter  whom  he  loved  instead  of  fearing  ; or  just  as  the 
mother  is  the  slave  to  her  sick  child,  and  would  do 
almost  impossibilities,  not  because  it  is  her  duty,  but 
because  she  loves  her  child ; — so  the  whole  moral  law 
is  abrogated  to  us  as  a Law,  because  obedience  to  it  is 
ensured  in  the  spirit. 

2.  The  Law  of  redeemed  Humanity : Because 

we  thus  judge,  that  if  one  died  for  all,  then  were  all 
dead.” 

All  are  dead : ” that  I call  the  law  of  redeemed 
Humanity.  Let  us  explain  this  expression.  It  is 
sometimes  interpreted : If  one  died  for  all,  then  all 

must  have  been  spiritually  dead.”  But  this  is  not  St. 
IhuiTs  meaning.  Those  who  have  intelligently  fol- 
lowed his  argument  thus  far,  will  see  at  once  that  it  is 
beside  liis  r(‘as()ning.  ddiere  are  two  kinds  of  death  — 
one  in  sin,  before  Redemption  ; the  other  to  sin,  which 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


325 


is  Redemption.  Here  it  is’  of  the  death  to  sin,  and  not 
the  death  in  sin,  that  St.  Paul  speaks.  This  is  his  argu- 
ment : — If  One  died  as  tlie  representative  of  all,  then 
in  that  death  all  died  ; not  that  they  were  dead  before, 
but  dead  then.  You  will  recollect  that  this  is  the  great 
thought  throughout  this  Epistle.  Every  Christian  is 
dead  in  Christ’s  death,  and  risen  in  Christ’s  resurrec- 
tion : In  that  He  died.  He  died  unto  sin  once  : but  in 
that  He  liveth.  He  liveth  unto  God.  Likewise  reckon 
ye  also  yourselves  to  be  dead  indeed  unto  sin,  but  alive 
unto  God  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.”  Again, 
‘‘  I am  crucified  with  Christ : nevertheless  I live  ; yet 
not  I,  but  Christ  liveth  in  me.”  So  here  there  is  exactly 
the  same  train  of  thought : He  died  for  all,  that  they 

which  live  should  not  henceforth  live  unto  themselves, 
but  unto  Him  which  died  for  them,  and  rose  again.”  — 
(ver.  15.)  This  is  Christ’s  Redemption  : He  died  to 
sin  /cr  all,  as  the  Representative  of  all.  In  his  death  we 
all  have  died.  He  rose  again,  and  Life  is  now  owed  to 
Him.  In  Christ  alone,  then,  is  the  true  law  of  our 
Humanity  intelligible. 

3.  The  new  aspect  of  Humanity  in  Christ : a new 
creature,”  or  creation. 

Humanity  as  a whole,  and  individually,  is  spiritual- 
ized ; it  is  viewed  in  Christ  as  a thing  dead  and  alive 
acrain  — dead  to  evil,  but  risen  to  rmhteousness.  For 
even  such  is  Christ,  the  Son  of  Man  (v.  16)  : Yea, 
though  we  have  known  Christ  after  the  flesh,  yet  now 
henceforth  know  we  Him  no  more.”  Even  Christ  we 
know  now  as  the  Son  of  God,  rather  than  as  the  Son  of 
Man.  So  by  us  Christ  is  to  be  known  spiritually,  and 
not  with  worldly  ideas,  such  as  the  Apostles  had  of  Him 
when  He  lived.  He  is  to  be  recognized  no  more  as 
weak,  rejected,  despised,  battling  with  evil,  but  as  the 
Conqueror  of  Evil : for  the  Resurrection  has  shown 
what  he  was  : He  was  declared  to  be  the  Son  of  God, 
with  power,  according  to  the  spirit  of  holiness,  by  the 
resurrection  from  the  dead.”  Remember,  however,  the 
historical  order  : Christ  was  revealed  first  as  Man,  then 
as  God  ; so,  now,  it  is  best  to  begin  with  the  simplest 
28 


32G 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


«nspect  of  Him.  Teach  children  the  simple  heaiity  of 
Christ’s  manhood,  only  we  must  not  rest  tliere  : Now, 

therefore,  it  is  not  Christ  wlio  was,  hut  Clirist  who  is  ; 
it  is  Clirist  who  died,  yea,  rather  who  is  risen  again  : 
who  also  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  us.”  It  is  the 
same  in  each  individual  Christian.  A Christian  is  hu- 
man nature  revolutionized  (v.  17).  Almost  the  deepest 
thing  in  the  Jewish  mind  was  that  exclusiveness,  which 
made  the  Jew  at  last  believe  that  holiness  consisted  in 
national  separation.  In  the  Jew,  then,  Christianity 
caused  the  abjuration  of  prejudice.  The  Gentile  it 
freed  from  atheism  and  idolatry.  In  both  the  Jew  and 
Gentile  it  changed  the  life  of  flesh  and  self  into  a 
spiritual  and  self-sacrificing  existence. 

My  brethren,  there  must  be  a crisis  in  your  being. 
It  may  be  gradual  in  its  progress,  like  John  the  Bap- 
tist’s, or  sudden,  like  St.  Paul’s  ; but  except  it  take 
place,  except  a man  be  born  again,  he  cannot  see  the 
Kingdom  of  God.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


327 


LECTURE  XLIV. 

June  23,  1850. 

2 Corinthians,  v.  14,  15.  — “ For  the  love  of  Christ  constraineth  us; 
because  we  thus  judge,  that  if  one  died  for  all,  then  were  all  dead  : 
and  that  he  died  for  all,  that  they  which  live  should  not  hence- 
forth live  unto  themselves,  but  unto  him  which  died  for  them,  and 
rose  again.” 

It  may  be  that  in  reading  tliese  verses,  some  of  ns 
have  understood  them  in  a sense  foreign  to  that  of  the 
Apostle.  It  may  have  seemed  that  the  arguments  ran 
thus : — Because  Christ  died  upon  the  cross  for  all^ 
therefore  all  must  have  been  in  a state  of  spiritual  death 
before  ; and  if  they  were  asked  what  doctrines  are  to 
be  elicited  from  this  passage,  they  would  reply,  the 
doctrine  of  universal  depravity,  and  the  constraining 
power  of  the  gratitude  due  to  Him  who  died  to  redeem 
us  from  it.”  There  is,  however,  in  the  first  place, 
this  fatal  objection  to  such  an  interpretation,  that  the 
death  here  spoken  of  is  used  in  two  diametrically  op- 
posite senses.  In  reference  to  Christ,  death  literal ; in 
reference  to  all,  death  spiritual.  Now,  in  the  thought 
of  St.  Paul,  the  death  of  Christ  was  always  viewed 
as  liberation  from  the  power  of  evil : in  that  he  died, 
he  died  unto  sin  once ; ” and  again,  he  that  is  dead  is 
freed  from  sin.”  The  literal  death,  then,  in  one  clause, 
means  freedom  from  sin  ; the  spiritual  death  of  the 
next  is  slavery  to  it.  Wherein,  then,  lies  the  cogency 
of  the  Apostle’s  reasoning  ? How  does  it  follow, 
that  because  Christ  died  to  evil,  all  before  that  must 
have  died  to  God  ? Of  course  that  doctrine  is  true  in 
itself,  but  it  is  not  the  doctrine  of  the  text. 

In  the  next  place,  the  ambiguity  belongs  only  to 
the  English  word  — it  is  impossible  to  make  the  mis- 
take in  the  original : the  word  which  stands  for  were^ 


328 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


is  a word  which  does  not  imply  a continued  state,  but 
must  imply  a single  finished  act.  It  cannot  by  any 
possibility  imply  that  before  the  death  of  Christ  men 
loere  in  a state  of  death  — it  can  only  mean,  they  be- 
came dead  at  the  moment  when  Christ  died.  If  you 
read  it  thus,  the  meaning  of  the  English  will  emerge 

— if  one  died  for  all,  then  all  died  ; and  the  Apostle’s 
argument  runs  thus,  that  if  one  act  as  the  representative 
of  all,  then  his  act  is  the  act  of  all.  If  the  ambassa- 
dor of  a nation  makes  reparation  in  a nation’s  name, 
or  does  homage  for  a nation,  that  reparation,  or  that 
homage,  is  tlie  nation’s  act  — if  one  did  it  for  all,  then 
all  did  it.  So  that  instead  of  inferring  that  because 
Christ  died  for  all,  therefore  before  that  all  were  dead  to 
God,  his  natural  inference  is  that,  therefore,  all  are  now 
dead  to  sin.  Once  more,  the  conclusion  of  the  Apostle 
is  exactly  the  reverse  of  that  which  this  interpretation 
attributes  to  him  : he  does  not  say  that  Christ  died  in 
order  that  men  might  not  die,  but  exactly  for  this  very 
purpose,  that  they  might ; and  this  death  he  represents 
in  the  next  verse  by  an  equivalent  expression  — the  life 
of  unselfishness : that  they  which  live  might  hence- 
forth live  not  unto  themselves.”  The  dead  ” of  the 
first  verse,  are  they  that  live  ” of  the  second. 

The  form  of  thought  finds  its  exact  parallel  in  Ho- 
onans^  vi.  10,  11.  Two  points  claim  our  attention  : — 

I.  The  vicarious  sacrifice  of  Christ. 

II.  The  influence  of  that  sacrifice  on  man. 

I.  The  vicariousness  of  the  sacrifice  is  implied  in 
the  word  for.”  A vicarious  act  is  an  act  done  for 
another.  When  the  Pope  calls  himself  the  vicar  of 
Clirist,  he  implies  that  he  acts  for  Christ.  The  vicar 
or  viceroy  of  a kingdom,  is  one  who  acts  for  the  king 

— a vicar’s  act,  therefore,  is  virtually  the  act  of  the 
priiici})al  whom  he  represents  ; so  that  if  the  papal  doc- 
trine were  true,  when  the  vicar  of  Christ  pardons^ 
Christ  has  i)ai-doned.  When  the  viceroy  of  a kingdom 
has  published  a ])roclamation,  or  signed  a treaty,  the 
bovereimi  himself  is  bound  by  those  acts. 

O 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


329 


The  truth  of  the  expression  for  all  is  contained  in 
this  fact,  that  Christ  is  the  representative  of  humanity 

— properly  speaking,  the  reality  of  human  nature. 
This  is  the  truth  contained  in  the  emphatic  expression, 
‘‘  Son  of  Man.”  What  Christ  did  for  humanity  was 
done  by  humanity,  because  in  the  name  of  humanity. 
For  a tmly  vicarious  act  does  not  supersede  the  prin- 
cipal’s duty  of  performance,  but  rather  implies  and 
acknowledges  it.  Take  the  case  from  which  this  very 
word  of  vicar  has  received  its  origin.  In  the  old  mon- 
astic times,  when  the  revenues  of  a cathedral  or  a cure 
fell  to  the  lot  of  a monastery,  it  became  the  duty  of 
that  monastery  to  perform  the  religious  services  of  the 
cure.  But  inasmuch  as  the  monastery  was  a corporate 
body,  they  appointed  one  of  their  number,  whom  they 
denominated  their  vicar,  to  discharge  those  offices  for 
them.  His  service  did  not  supersede  theirs,  but  was  a 
perpetual  and  standing  acknowledgment  that  they,  as  a 
whole  and  individually,  were  under  the  obligation  to 
perform  it.  The  act  of  Christ  is  the  act  of  humanity 

— that  which  all  humanity  is  bound  to  do.  His  righte- 
ousness does  not  supersede  our  righteousness,  nor  does 
His  sacrifice  supersede  our  sacrifice.  It  is  the  represen- 
tation of  human  life  and  human  sacrifice  — vicarious 
for  all,  yet  binding  upon  all. 

That  Christ  died  for  all  is  true  — 

1.  Because  He  was  the  victim  of  the  sin  of  all.  In 
the  peculiar  phraseology  of  St.  Paul,  he  died  unto  sin. 
He  was  the  victim  of  sin  — He  died  by  sin.  It  is  the 
appalling  mystery  of  our  redemption  that  the  Redeemer 
took  the  attitude  of  subjection  to  evil.  There  was 
scarcely  a form  of  evil  with  which  Christ  did  not  come 
in  contact,  and  by  which  he  did  not  suffer.  He  was 
the  victim  of  false  friendship  and  ingratitude,  the  victim 
of  bad  government  and  injustice.  He  fell  a sacrifice  to 
the  vices  of  all  classes  — to  the  selfishness  of  the  rich, 
and  the  fickleness  of  the  poor:  intolerance,  formalism, 
scepticism,  hatred  of  goodness,  were  the  foes  which 
crushed  Him. 

In  the  proper  sense  of  the  word.  He  was  a victim. 

28* 


330 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


He  did  not  adroitly  wind  through  the  dangerous  forms 
of  evil,  meeting  it  with  expedient  silence.  Face  to 
face,  and  front  to  front.  He  met  it,  rebuked  it,  and  de- 
fied it ; and  just  as  truly  as  he  is  a voluntary  victim  whose 
body  opposing  the  progress  of  the  car  of  Juggernaut  is 
crushed  beneath  its  monstrous  wheels,  was  Christ  a vic- 
tim to  the  world’s  sin : because  pure.  He  was  crushed 
by  impurity  : because  just,  and  real,  and  true,  He  waked 
up  the  rage  of  injustice,  hypocrisy,  and  falsehood. 

Now  this  was  the  sin  of  all.  Here  arises  at  once  a 
difficulty  : it  seems  to  be  most  unnatural  to  assert  that  in 
any  one  sense  He  was  the  sacrifice  of  the  sin  of  all. 
We  did  not  betray  Him  — that  was  Judas’s  act  — Peter 
denied  Him  — Thomas  doubted  — Pilate  pronounced 
sentence  — it  must  be  a figment  to  say  that  these  were 
our  acts  ; we  did  not  watch  Him  like  the  Pharisees,  nor 
circumvent  Him  like  the  Scribes  and  lawyers  ; by  what 
possible  sophistry  can  we  be  involved  in  the  complicity 
of  that  guilt  ? The  savage  of  New  Zealand  who  never 
heard  of  Him,  the  learned  Egyptian  and  the  voluptuous 
Assyrian  who  died  before  He  came ; how  was  it  the  sin 
of  dll  ? 

The  reply  that  is  often  given  to  this  query  is  wonder- 
fully unreal.  It  is  assumed  that  Christ  was  conscious, 
by  His  Omniscience,  of  the  sins  of  all  mankind ; that 
the  duplicity  of  the  child,  and  the  crime  of  the  assassin, 
and  every  unholy  thought  that  has  ever  passed  through 
a human  bosom,  were  present  to  His  mind  in  that  awful 
hour  as  if  they  were  His  own.  This  is  utterly  unscrip- 
tural.  Where  is  the  single  text  from  which  it  can  be, 
except  by  force,  extracted  ? Besides  this,  it  is  fanciful 
and  sentimental  ; and  again,  it  is  dangerous,  for  it  rep- 
resents the  whole  atonement  as  a fictitious  and  shadowy 
transaction.  There  is  a mental  state  in  which  men  have 
felt  the  burden  of  sins  which  they  did  not  commit. 
There  have  been  cases  in  which  men  have  been  mysttv 
riously  excruciated  with  the  thought  of  having  com- 
mitted tlie  unpardonable  sin.  But  to  rejxresent  the 
mental  [)lienomena  of  the  Redeemer’s  mind  as  in  any 
way  resembling  this  — to  say  that  His  conscience  was 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


331 


oppressed  with  the  responsibility  of  sins  which  He  had 
not  committed  — is  to  confound  a state  of  sanity  with 
the  delusions  of  a half  lucid  mind,  and  the  workings  of 
a healthy  conscience  with  those  of  one  unnatural  and 
morbid. 

There  is  a way,  however,  much  more  appalling  and 
much  more  real,  in  which  this  may  be  true,  without  re- 
sorting to  any  such  fanciful  hypothesis.  Sin  has  a great 
power  in  this  world  : it  gives  laws  like  those  of  a sov- 
ereign, which  bind  us  all,  and  to  which  we  are  all  sub- 
missive. There  are  current  maxims  in  Church  and 
State,  in  society,  in  trade,  in  law,  to  which  we  yield 
obedience.  For  this  obedience  every  one  is  responsible  ; 
for  instance,  in  trade,  and  in  the  profession  of  law, 
every  one  is  the  servant  of  practices  the  rectitude  of 
which  his  heart  can  only  half  approve  — every  one 
complains  of  them,  yet  all  are  involved  in  them.  Now, 
when  such  sins  reach  their  climax,  as  in  the  case  of 
national  bankruptcy,  or  an  unjust  acquittal,  there  may 
be  some  who  are,  in  a special  sense,  the  actors  in  the 
guilt ; but  evidently,  for  the  bankruptcy,  each  member 
of  the  community  is  responsible  in  that  degree  and  so 
far  as  he  himself  acquiesced  in  the  duplicities  of  public 
dealing  ; every  careless  juror,  every  unrighteous  judge, 
every  false  witness,  has  done  his  part  in  the  reduction 
of  society  to  that  state  in  which  the  monster  injustice 
has  been  perpetrated.  In  the  riot  of  a tumultuous  as- 
sembly by  night,  a house  may  be  burnt,  or  a murder 
committed  ; in  the  eye  of  the  law,  all  who  are  aiding 
and  abetting  there,  are  each  in  his  degree  responsible  for 
that  crime  ; there  may  be  difference  in  guilt,  from  the 
degree  in  which  he  is  guilty  who  with  his  own  hand 
perpetrated  the  deed,  to  that  of  him  who  merely  joined 
the  rabble  from  mischievous  curiosity  — degrees  from 
that  of  wilful  murder  to  that  of  more  or  less  excusable 
homicide.  The  Pharisees  were  declared  by  the  Saviour 
to  be  guilty  of  the  blood  of  Zacharlas,  the  blood  of 
righteous  Abel,  and  of  all  the  saints  and  prophets  who 
fell  before  He  came.  But  how  were  the  Pharisees 
guilty  ? They  built  the  sepulchres  of  the  prophets, 


332 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


they  honored  and  admired  them  : hut  they  were  guilty 
in  that  they  were  tlie  clnldren  of  tliose  tliat  slew  tlie 
prophets  ; children  in  this  sense,  that  tliey  inlierited 
their  sphit^  tliey  opposed  the  good  in  the  foi’in  in  whicli 
it  showed  itself  in  their  day^  just  as  their  fathers  opposed 
the  form  displayed  to  theirs  ; therefore  lie  said  tliat 
they  belonged  to  the  same  confederacy  of  evil,  and  that 
the  guilt  of  the  blood  of  all  who  had  been  slain  should 
rest  on  that  generation.  Similarly  we  are  guilty  of  the 
death  of  Christ.  If  you  have  been  a false  friend,  a 
sceptic,  a cowardly  disciple,  a formalist,  selfish,  an  o])- 
poser  of  goodness,  an  oppressor,  whatever  evil  you  have 
done,  in  that  degree  and  so  far  you  participate  in  the 
evil  to  which  the  Just  One  fell  a victim  — you  are  one 
of  that  mighty  rabble  which  cried,  Crucify  Him,  Cru- 
cify Him ; ’’  for  your  sin  He  died  ; His  blood  lies  at 
your  threshold. 

Again,  He  died  for  all,  in  that  His  sacrifice  represents 
the  sacrifice  of  all.  We  have  heard  of  the  doctrine  of 

imputed  righteousness  it  is  a theological  expression 
to  which  meanino;s  foolish  enough  are  sometimes  attri- 
buted,  but  it  contains  a very  deep  truth,  which  it  shall 
be  our  endeavor  to  elicit. 

Christ  is  the  realized  idea  of  our  humanity.  He  is 
God’s  idea  of  man  completed.  There  is  every  differ- 
ence between  the  ideal  and  the  actual  — between  what 
a man  aims  to  be  and  what  he  is  ; a difference  between 
the  race  as  it  is,  and  the  race  as  it  existed  in  God’s 
creative  idea  when  He  pronounced  it  very  good. 

In  Christ,  therefore,  God  beholds  humanity  ; in  Christ 
He  sees  j)erfec.ted  every  one  in  whom  Christ’s  spirit  ex- 
ists in  germ.  He  to  whom  the  possible  is  actual,  to 
wliom  what  will  be  already  is,  sees  all  things  present^ 
gazes  on  the  imperfect,  and  sees  it  in  its  perfection. 
J^et  me  venture  an  illustration.  He  who  has  never 
seen  the  vegetable  world  except  in  Arctic  regions,  has 
but  a ])oor  idea  of  the  majesty  of  vegetable  life, — a 
microscopic*  red  moss  tinting  the  surface  of  the  snow,  a 
few  stunted  pines,  and  here  and  there  j)erha])s  a dwin- 
dl(‘d  oak  ; but  to  the  botanist,  who  has  seen  the  luxuri- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


833 


ance  of  vegetation  in  its  tropical  magnificence,  all  that 
wretched  scene  presents  another  aspect ; to  him  those 
dwarfs  are  the  representatives  of  what  might  be,  nay, 
what  has  been,  in  a kindlier  soil  and  a more  genial  cli- 
mate ; he  fills  up  by  his  conception  the  miserable  actu- 
ality presented  by  these  shrubs,  and  attributes  to  them 
— imputes,  that  is,  to  them  — the  majesty  of  which  tlie 
undeveloped  germ  exists  already.  Now,  the  difference 
between  those  trees  seen  in  themselves,  and  seen  in  the 
conception  of  their  nature’s  perfectness  which  has  been 
previously  realized,  is  the  difference  between  man  seen 
in  himself  and  seen  in  Christ.  We  are  feeble,  dwarfish, 
stunted  specimens  of  humanity.  Our  best  resolves  are 
but  withered  branches,  our  holiest  deeds  unripe  and 
blighted  fruit ; but  to  the  Infinite  Eye,  who  sees  in  the 
. perfect  One  tlie  type  and  assurance  of  that  which  shall 
be,  this  dwindled  humanity  of  ours  is  divine  and  glori- 
ous. Such  are  Ave  in  the  sight  of  God  the  Father,  as  is 
the  very  Son  of  God  Himself.  This  is  what  theologians, 
at  least  the  wisest  of  them,  meant  by  imputed  right- 
eousness.” I do  not  mean  that  all  who  have  written 
or  spoken  on  the  subject  had  this  conception  of  it,  but 
I believe  they  who  thought  truly  meant  this ; they  did 
not  suppose  tliat  in  imputing  righteousness  there  was  a 
kind  of  figment,  a self-deception  in  the  mind  of  God  ; 
they  did  not  mean  that  by  an  act  of  will  He  chose  to 
consider  that  every  act  which  Christ  did  Avas  done  by 
us  ; that  He  imputed  or  reckoned  to  us  the  baptism  in 
Jordan,  and  the  Auctory  in  the  wilderness,  and  the  agony 
in  the  garden,  or  that  He  believed,  or  acted  as  if  he  be- 
lieved, that  Avhen  Christ  died,  each  one  of  us  died  ; but 
He  saAV  humanity  submitted  to  the  law  of  self-sacrifice ; 
in  the  light  of  that  idea  He  beholds  us  as  perfect,  and  is 
satisfied.  In  this  sense  the  Apostle  speaks  of  those  that 
are  imperfect,  yet  by  one  offering  He  hath  perfected 
for  ever  them  that  are  sanctified.”  It  is  true,  again, 
that  He  died  for  us,  in  that  Ave  present  His  sacrifice  as 
ours.  The  A^alue  of  the  death  of  Christ  consisted  in 
the  surrender  of  self-will.  In  the  fortieth  Psalm,  the 
value  of  every  other  kind  of  sacrifice  being  first  denied, 


334 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


the  words  follow,  ^Hhen  said  I,  Lo,  I come,  to  do  thy 
will,  O God.’’  The  profound  idea  contained,  therefore, 
in  the  death  of  Christ,  is  the  duty  of  self-snrrerider. 

But  in  us  that  surrender  scarcely  deserves  the  name ; 
even  to  use  the  word  self-sacrifice  covers  us  with  a 
kind  of  shame.  Then  it  is,  that  there  is  an  almost 
boundless  joy  in  acquiescing  in  the  life  and  death  of 
Christ,  recognizing  it  as  ours,  and  representing  it  to 
ourselves  and  God  as  what  we  aim  at.  If  we  cannot 
understand  how  in  this  sense  it  can  be  a sacrifice  for  us, 
we  may  partly  realize  it  by  remembering  the  joy  of 
feeling  how  art  and  nature  realize  for  us  what  we  can- 
not realize  for  ourselves.  It  is  recorded  of  one  of  the 
world’s  gifted  painters,  that  he  stood  before  the  master- 
piece of  the  great  genius  of  his  age  — one  which  he 
could  never  hope  to  equal,  nor  even  rival  — and  yet 
the  infinite  superiority,  so  far  from  crushing  him,  only 
elevated  his  feeling,  for  he  saw  realized  those  concep- 
tions wdiich  had  floated  before  him,  dim  and  unsub- 
stantial ; in  every  line  and  touch  he  felt  a spirit  im- 
measurably superior,  yet  kindred,  and  is  reported  to 
have  exclaimed,  with  dignified  humility,  And  I,  too, 
am  a painter  ! ” 

Or,  again,  we  must  all  have  felt,  when  certain  effects 
in  nature,  combinations  of  form  and  color,  have  been 
presented  to  us,  our  own  idea  speaking  in  intelligible 
and  yet  celestial  language  ; when,  for  instance,  the 
long  bars  of  purple,  edged  with  intolerable  radiance,” 
seemed  to  float  in  a sea  of  pale,  pure  green,  when  the 
whole  sky  seemed  to  reel  with  thunder,  when  the 
nio:lit-wind  moaned.  It  is  wonderful  how  the  most 
commonplace  men  and  women,  beings  who,  as  you 
would  have  thought,  had  no  conception  that  rose  be- 
yond a commercial  speculation  or  a fashionable  en- 
tertainment, are  elevated  by  such  scenes ; how  the 
slumbering  grandeur  of  their  nature  wakes  and  ac- 
knowledges kindr(‘d  with  the  sky  and  storm.  I 
cannot  speak,”  they  would  say,  the  feelings  which 
are  in  me  ; 1 have  had  emotions,  aspirations,  thoughts  ; 
I cannot  put  them  into  words.  Look  there!  listen  now  to 


TO  THE  COEINTHIANS. 


335 


the  storm  ! That  is  what  I meant,  only  I never  could 
say  it  out  till  now.”  Thus  do  art  and  nature  speak  for 
ns,  and  thus  do  we  adopt  them  as  our  own.  This  is  the 
way  in  which  His  righteousness  becomes  righteousness 
for  us.  This  is  the  way  in  which  the  heart  presents  to 
God  the  sacrifice  of  Christ ; gazing  on  that  perfect 
Life,  we,  as  it  were,  say,  There,  that  is  my  religion 
— that  is  my  righteousness  — what  I want  to  be,  which 
I am  not  — that  is  my  offering,  my  life  as  I would  wish 
to  give  it,  freely  and  not  checked,  entire  and  perfect.” 
So  the  old  prophets,  their  hearts  big  with  unutterable 
thoughts,  searched  what  or  what  manner  of  time  the 
spirit  of  Christ  which  was  in  them  did  signify,  when  it 
testified  beforehand  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  and  of 
the  glory  which  should  follow  ; ” and  so  with  us,  until 
it  passes  into  prayer : ‘‘  My  Saviour,  fill  up  the  blurred 
and  blotted  sketch  which  my  clumsy  hand  has  drawn 
of  a divine  life,  with  the  fulness  of  Thy  perfect  picture. 
I feel  the  beauty  which  I cannot  realize  : — robe  me  in 
Thine  unutterable  purity  ! ” 

II.  The  influence  of  that  Sacrifice  on  man  is  the 
introduction  of  the  principle  of  self-sacrifice  into  his 
nature, — then  were  all  dead.”  Observe  again,  not 
He  died  that  we  might  not  die,  but  that  in  His  death 
we  might  be  dead,  and  that  in  His  sacrifice  we  might 
become  each  a sacrifice  to  God.  Moreover,  this  death 
is  identical  with  life.  They  who,  in  the  first  sentence, 
are  called  dead,  are  in  the  second  denominated  they 
who  live.”  So  in  another  place,  I am  crucified  with 
Christ,  nevertheless  I live;  ” death,  therefore  — that  is, 
the  sacrifice  of  self — is  equivalent  to  life.  Now,  this 
rests  upon  a profound  truth.  The  death  of  Christ  was 
a representation  of  the  life  of  God.  To  me  this  is  the 
profoundest  of  all  truths,  that  the  whole  of  the  life  of 
God  is  the  sacrifice  of  self.  God  is  love  ; love  is  sacri- 
fice — to  give  rather  than  to  receive  — the  blessedness 
of  self-giving.  If  the  life  of  God  were  not  such,  it 
would  be  a falsehood  to  say  that  God  is  Love  ; for, 
even  in  our  human  nature,  that  which  seeks  to  enjoy 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EELSTLES 


all  instead  of  giving  all,  is  known  hj  a very  different 
name  from  that  of  love.  All  the  life  of  God  is  a flow 
of  this  divine,  self-giving  charity.  Creation  itself  is 
sacrifice  — the  self-irnpartation  of  the  divine  Being. 
Redemption,  too,  is  sacrifice,  else  it  could  not  be  love  ; 
for  which  reason  we  will  not  surrender  one  iota  of  the 
truth . that  the  death  of  Christ  was  the  sacrifice  of  God 
— the  manifestation  once  in  time  of  that  which  is  the 
eternal  law  of  His  life. 

If  man,  therefore,  is  to  rise  into  the  life  of  God,  he 
must  be  absorbed  into  the  spirit  of  that  sacrifice  — he 
must  die  with  Clirist,  if  he  would  enter  into  his  proper 
life.  For  sin  is  the  withdrawing  into  self  and  egotism, 
out  of  the  vivifying  life  of  God,  which  alone  is  our  true 
life.  The  moment  the  man  sins,  he  dies.  Know  we  not 
how  awfully  true  that  sentence  is,  Sin  revived,  and  I 
died  ? ” The  vivid  life  of  sin  is  the  death  of  the  man. 
Have  we  never  felt  that  our  true  existence  has  abso- 
lutely in  that  moment  disappeared,  and  that  we  are 
not? 

I say,  therefore,  that  real  human  life  is  a perpetual 
completion  and  repetition  of  the  sacrifice  of  Christ  — 
all  are  dead ; ” the  explanation  of  which  follows, 
to  live  not  to  themselves,  but  to  Him  who  died  for 
them,  and  rose  again.”  This  is  the  truth  which  lies 
at  the  bottom  of  the  Romish  doctrine  of  the  mass. 
Rome  asserts  that  in  the  mass  a true  and  proper  sacri- 
fice is  offered  up  for  the  sins  of  all  — that  the  offering 
of  Christ  is  for  ever  repeated.  To  this  Protestantism 
has  objected  vehemently,  that  there  is  but  one  offering 
once  olfered — an  objection  in  itself  entirely  true  ; yet 
the  Romish  doctrine  contains  a truth  which  it  is  of  im- 
portance to  disengage  from  the  gross  and  material  form 
with  which  it  has  been  overlaid.  Let  us  hear  St.  Paul, 
I fill  up  that  which  is  behindhand  of  the  sufferings  of 
Christ,  in  my  flesh,  for  His  body’s  sake,  which  is  the 
Churcli.”  Was  there,  then,  something  behindhand  of 
Christ’s  siiflerings  remaining  uncompleted,  of  which  the 
sufferings  of  Paul  could  be  in  any  sense  the  comple- 
ment? lie  sjiys  th(‘re  was.  (kmld  the  sufferings  of 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


337 


Paul  for  the  Church,  in  any  form  of  correct  expression, 
be  said  to  eke  out  the  sufferings  that  were  complete  ? 
In  one  sense  it  is  true  to  say,  that  there  is  one  offering 
once  offered  for  all.  But  it  is  equally  true  to  say,  that 
that  one  offering  is  valueless,  except  so  far  as  it  is  com- 
pleted and  repeated  in  the  life  and  self-offering  all. 
This  is  the  Christian’s  sacrifice.  Not  mechanically 
completed  in  the  miserable  materialism  of  the  mass, 
but  spiritually  in  the  life  of  all  in  whom  the  Crucified 
lives.  The  sacrifice  of  Christ  is  done  over  again  in 
every  life  which  is  lived,  not  to  self,  but  to  God. 

Let  one  concluding  observation  be  made  — self-denial, 
self-sacrifice,  self-surrender ! Hard  doctrines,  and  im- 
possible! Whereupon,  in  silent  hours,  we  sceptically 
ask.  Is  this  possible  ? is  it  natural  ? Let  preacher  and 
moralist  say  what  they  will,  I am  not  here  to  sacrifice 
myself  for  others.  God  sent  me  here  for  happiness,  not 
misery.  Now  introduce  one  sentence  of  this  text  of 
which  we  have  as  yet  said  nothing,  and  the  dark  doc- 
trine becomes  illuminated  — love  of  Christ  con- 
straineth  us.”  Self-denial,  for  the  sake  of  self-denial, 
does  no  good  ; self-sacrifice  for  its  own  sake  is  no  relig- 
ious act  at  all.  If  you  give  up  a meal  for  the  sake  of 
showing  power  over  self,  or  for  the  sake  of  self-disci- 
pline, it  is  the  most  miserable  of  all  delusions.  You  are 
not  more  religious  in  doing  this  than  before.  This  is 
mere  self-culture,  and  self-culture  being  occupied  for 
ever  about  self,  leaves  you  only  in  that  circle  of  self  from 
which  religion  is  to  free  you  ; but  to  give  up  a meal  that 
one  you  love  may  have  it,  is  properly  a religious  act  — 
no  hard  and  dismal  duty,  because  made  easy  by  affec- 
tion. To  bear  pain  for  the  sake  of  bearing  it,  has  in  it 
no  moral  quality  at  all,  but  to  bear  it  rather  than  sur- 
render truth,  or  in  order  to  save  another,  is  positive 
enjoyment,  as  well  as  ennobling  to  the  soul.  Did  you 
ever  receive  even  a blow  meant  for  another  in  order  to 
shield  that  other  ? Do  you  not  know  that  there  was 
actual  pleasure  in  the  keen  pain  far  beyond  the  most 
rapturous  thrill  of  nerve  which  could  be  gained  from 
pleasure  in  the  midst  of  painlessness  ? Is  not  the  mystic 
29 


338 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


yearning  of  love  expressed  in  words  most  purely  thus, 
Let  me  suffer  for  him  ? 

Tliis  element  of  love  is  that  which  makes  this  doctrine 
an  intelligible  and  blessed  truth.  So  sacrifice  alone, 
bare  and  unrelieved,  is  ghastly,  unnatural,  and  dead  ; 
but  self-sacrifice,  illuminated  by  love,  is  warmth  and 
life  ; it  is  the  death  of  Christ,  the  life  of  God,  the  bless- 
edness, and  only  proper  life  of  man. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


339 


LECTURE  XL  V. 

December  12,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  v.  18-21.  — And  all  things  are  of  God,  who  hath 
reconciled  us  to  himself  by  Jesus  Christ,  and  hath  given  to  us  the 
ministry  of  reconciliation;  — To  wit,  that  God  was  in  Christ,  recon- 
ciling the  world  unto  himself,  not  imputing  their  trespasses  unto 
them;  and  hath  committed  unto  us  the  word  of  reconciliation. — 
Now  then  we  are  ambassadors  for  Christ,  as  though  God  did  beseech 
you  by  us : we  pray  you  in  Christ’s  stead,  be  ye  reconciled  to  God. 
— For  he  hath  made  him  to  be  sin  for  us  who  knew  no  sin ; that  we 
might  be  made  the  righteousness  of  God  in  him.” 

The  last  verses  on  which  we  spoke  declared  the 
Christian  aspect  of  human  nature,  and  the  law  of  regen- 
erated Humanity.  The  aspect  of  Humanity  in  Christ 
is  a new  creation  : in  Him  human  nature  is  re-created 
(v.  17).  Consequently,  every  one  is  to  be  looked  at 
now,  not  merely  as  a man,  but  as  a brother  in  Christ. 
No  man  is  to  be  known  now  any  more  after  the  flesh. 
A more  striking  instance  of  this  is  not  to  be  found  than 
the  way  in  which  Philemon  was  desired  by  St.  Paul  to 
consider  Onesimus  his  slave.  The  middle  w^all  of 
partition  ” has  been  broken  down  for  ever  between  Jew 
and  Gentile,  between  class  and  class. 

The  law  of  Humanity  in  Christ  is,  that  they  which 
live  should  not  henceforth  live  unto  themselves,  but 
unto  Him  which  died  for  them,”  (v.  15).  Such  is  the 
Christian  law  of  sacriflce  : to  present  our  bodies  and 
souls  to  Christ  as  a living  offering.  It  is  no  longer  the 
law  of  nature  which  rules  our  life,  no  longer  self-preser- 
vation, self-indulgence  ; but  it  is  self-surrender  towards 
God  and  towards  man. 

We  come  now  to  another  subject,  and  the  connec- 
tion between  it  and  the  former  is  contained  in  the 
eighteenth  verse.  All  this,  says  St.  Paul,  arises  out  of 


340 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


the  reconciliation  effected  between  God  and  man  by, 
Christ. 

First,  then,  we  will  speak  of  Christ’s  work  — the 
reconciliation  of  God  to  man. 

Secondly,  the  work  of  the  Christian  ministry  — the 
reconciliation  of  man  to  God. 

I,  God  hath  reconciled  us  to  Himself  by  Jesus 
Christ.’’  Now  reconciliation  is  identical  with  atone- 
ment. In  Romans^  v.  11,  the  word  atonement  ” 
occurs,  but  on  referring  to  the  margin  you  will  find  that 
it  is  the  same  word  wdiich  is  here  translated  ‘‘reconcil- 
iation.” Here,  therefore,  you  might  read  : “ Who  hath 
atoned  us  to  Himself  by  Jesus  Christ.”  We  cannot 
repeat  this  too  often.  The  “ atonement  ” of  the  Bible 
is  the  reconciliation  between  God  and  man. 

Now  atonement  or  reconciliation  consists  of  two 
things; — 1.  The  reconciliation  of  God  to  the  world. 
2.  The  reconciliation  of  the  world  to  God. 

1.  We  say  that  God  needed  a reconciliation.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  Unitarian  view  is,  that  God  requires 
nothing  to  reconcile  Him  to  us,  that  he  is  reconciled  al- 
ready, that  the  only  thing  requisite  is  to  reconcile  man 
to  God.  It  also  declares  that  there  is  no  wrath  in  God 
toward  sinners,  for  punishment  does  not  manifest  indig- 
nation. Nothing  can  be  more  false,  unphilosophical, 
and  unscriptural.  First  of  all,  take  one  passage,  which 
is  decisive:  “But  now  after  that  ye  know  God,  or 
rather  are  known  of  God,  how  turn  ye  again  to  the 
weak  and  beggarly  elements,  whereunto  ye  desire  again 
to  be  in  bondage  ? ” St.  Paul  is  there  describing  the 
Christian  state,  and  he  declares  that  the  being  recog- 
nized of  God  is  more  characteristic  of  the  Gospel  state 
than  recognizing  God.  “ Know  God  : ” here  is  man 
reconciled  to  God.  “ Are  known  of  Him : ” here  is  God 
reconciled  to  man.  St.  Paul  holds  it  a more  adequate 
rei)resentati()n  of  the  Gospel  to  say,  Ye  are  known  of 
God,  that  is,  God  is  reconciled  to  you  — than  to  say.  Ye 
know  God,  that  is,  ye  are  reconciled  to  God.  So  much 
for  those  persons  who  recognize  the  authority  of  Scrip- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


341 


ture,  and  assert  at  the  same  time  that  it  does  not  speak 
of  an  Atonement  which  reconciles  God  to  man. 

Next,  it  is  perilous  to  explain  away,  as  a mere  figure 
of  speech,  those  passages  which  speak  of  God  as  angry 
with  sin.  God  is  angry  with  the  wicked,  and  the  first 
proof  of  this  is  to  be  drawn  from  our  own  conscience. 
We  feel  that  God  is  angry  ; and  if  that  be  but  figura- 
tive, then  it  is  only  figurative  to  say  that  God  is  pleased. 
There  must  be  some  deep  truth  in  those  expressions, 
or  else  we  lose  the  personality  of  God. 

2.  The  second  proof  comes  to  us  from  the  character 
of  Christ.  He  was  the  representative  of  God  : of  God 
under  the  limitations  of  Humanity.  Now  Christ  was 

angry, That,  therefore,  which  God  feels,  corres- 
ponds with  that  which  in  pure  Humanity  is  the  emo- 
tion of  anger.  No  other  word,  then,  will  adequately 
represent  God’s  feeling,  but  the  human  word  anger.  If 
we  explain  away  such  words,  we  lose  the  distinction 
between  right  and  wrong : we  lose  belief  in  God : for 
jmu  will  end  in  believing  there  is  no  God  at  all,  if  you 
begin  with  explaining  away  His  feelings. 

Again,  it  is  said  that  God  needs  no  reconciliation, 
because  he  is  immutable.  But  remember  that,  God 
remaining  immutable  and  the  sinner  changing,  God’s 
relation  to  the  sinner  changes.  God  is  Love,”  but 
love  to  good  is  hatred  to  evil.  If  you  are  evil,  then 
God  is  your  enemy.  You  change  God  by  being 
changed  yourself.  You  thus  alter  the  relation  : and 
hence  St.  James  says,  ‘‘  Draw  nigh  to  God,  and  He  will 
draw  nigh  to  you.” 

Now  the  way  in  which  the  text  speaks  of  the  recon- 
ciliation -of  God  to  us  is,  Not  imputing  their  trespass- 
es : ” for  the  Atonement  is  made  when  God  no  longer 
reckons  the  sinner  guilty.  Here  is  the  mystery  of  the 
Atonement.  God  is  reconciled  to  men  for  Christ’s 
sake.  Earnestly  I insist  that  the  Atonement  is  through 
Christ.  God  is  reconciled  to  Humanity  in  Christ ; then 
to  us  through  Him  : God  was  in  Christ.”  It  was  a 
Divine  Humanity.  To  that  Humanity  God  is  recon- 
ciled : there  could  be  no  enmity  between  God  and 
29* 


342 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Christ : I and  my  Father  are  One.”  To  all  those  in 

whom  Christ’s  Spirit  is,  God  imputes  tlie  righteousness 
which  is  as  yet  only  seminal,  germinal ; a seed,  not  a 
tree;  a spring,  not  a river;  an  aspiration,  not  an  at- 
tainment ; a righteousness  in  faith,  not  a righteousness 
in  works.  It  is  not,  then,  an  actual  righteousness,  but 
an  imputed  righteousness.  Hence  we  see  what  is  meant 
by  saying,  reconciled  or  atoned  through  Christ.”  We 
do  not  mean  that  each  man  reconciles  himself  as  Christ 
did,  by  being  righteous ; but  we  mean  that  God  views 
him  favorably  as  partaking  of  that  Humanity  which 
has  been  once  exhibited  on  earth,  a Holy,  Perfect,  and 
Divine  thing.  God  was  in  Christ,  reconciling  the 
world  unto  Himself,  not  imputing  their  trespasses  unto 
them.” 

But  we  must  distinguish  this  from  a vulgar  notion  of 
the  Atonement.  Some  use  it  as  meaning  appeasal^  not 
reconciliation  : not  that  the  All  Holy  One  was  recon- 
ciled to  Humanity  by  seeing  in  it  His  own  image,  and 
received  full  satisfaction  by  beholding  the  perfect  sacri- 
fice of  the  Will  of  the  Man  to  the  Will  of  God  ; but 
that  not  having  taken  out  the  full  satisfaction  of  punish- 
ment in  one  place.  He  was  content  to  do  it  in  the  other, 
J ustice,  they  say,  must  strike  : and  if  He  can  strike 
the  innocent,  it  is  richer  satisfaction  of  justice  than 
striking  the  guilty.  Strange  justice ! Unjust  to  let 
the  guilty  go  free,  but  quite  just  to  punish  the  innocent  I 
So  mournfully  do  we  deface  Christianity  ! It  is  sin- 
gular that  the  Romanists  have  a similar  perversion. 
There  are  pictures  which  represent  the  Virgin  as  inter- 
])osing  between  the  world  and  her  angry  Son  ; laying 
bare  her  maternal  bosom  by  way  of  appeal,*  and  the 
Son  yielding  that  to  His  mother’s  entreaty,  which  He 
would  not  do  for  Love.  What  the  Virgin  is  to  the 
Romanist,  that  is  Christ  to  some  Protestants.  Observe 
that,  according  to  both  opinions,  there  are  two  distinct 
Jjeings,  one  full  of  Wrath,  the  other  full  of  Mercy. 
Those  Romanists  make  Christ  the  Person  of  fury,  and 
Mary  the  Person  of  mercy.  Some  Protestants  repre- 
sent God  the  Father  as  the  wrathful  Being,  and  Christ 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


343 


as  the  Loving  One.  But  the  principle  in  both  views  is 
the  same. 

No ! this  text  contradicts  that  notion.  It  was  not 
Christ  appeasing  his  Father’s  wrath,  but  His  Father 
descending  into  Humanity  through  Him ; and  so,  by 
taking  the  manhood  into  God,  reconciling  the  world 
unto  Himself.  God  was  in  Christ,  reconciling  the 
world  to  Himself.”  It  was  God’s  infinite  Love  which 
redeemed  the  world,  and  not  God’s  fury  which  was 
appeased.  God  created  a Divine  Humanity,  and  so, 
changing  the  relation  between  man  and  Himself,  re- 
conciled Himself  to  man.  And  this  Divine  Humanity 
sacrificed  itself  for  us.  It  was  a vicarious  sacrifice. 
The  sacrifice  of  Christ  was  the  meritorious  cause  of 
our  acceptance.  What  was  there  in  it  which  satisfied 
God  ? Was  it  the  punishment  inflicted  ? No  ! It  was 
the  free  offering  of  Christ’s  Will  even  unto  death. 
“ Therefore,  doth  my  Father  love  me,  because  I lay 
down  my  life  for  the  sheep.” 

II.  The  work  of  the  Christian  ministry  — the  recon- 
ciliation of  man  to  God. 

Now  distinguish  Christ’s  position  from  ours.  It  was 
Christ’s  work  to  reconcile  God  to  man.  That  is  done, 
and  done  for  ever  ; we  cannot  add  anything  to  it.  That 
is  a priestly  power : and  it  is  at  our  peril  that  we  claim 
such  a power.  Ours  is  ministerial : His  alone  was 
priestly.  We  cannot  infuse  supernatural  virtue  into 
baptismal  water ; we  cannot  transform  bread  and  wine 
into  heavenly  aliment.  We  can  offer  no  sacrifice:  the 
concluding  sacrifice  is  done.  By  one  offering  He 
hath  perfected  for  ever  them  that  are  sanctified.”  So  far, 
then,  as  we  represent  anything  besides  this  as  necessary^ 
so  far  do  we  frustrate  it,  and  turn  the  Christian  minis- 
try into  a sacrificial  priesthood.  We  are  doing  as  did 
the  Galatians  of  old. 

Therefore  the  whole  work  of  the  Christian  ministry 
consists  in  declaring  God  as  reconciled  to  man : and  in 
beseeching  wdth  every  variety  of  illustration,  and  every 


344 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


degree  of  earnestness,  men  to  become  reconciled  to 
God.  It  is  this  which  is  not  done.  All  are  God’s 
children  by  right ; all  are  not  God’s  children  in  fact. 
All  are  sons  of  God ; but  all  have  not  the  Spirit  of 
sons,  whereby  they  cry,  Abba,  Father.”  All  are 
redeemed,  all  are  not  yet  sanctified. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


345 


LECTURE  XLVI. 

December  19,  1852. 

2 Corinthians  , vi.  1 - 10.  — ‘‘We  then,  as  workers  together  with 
him,  beseech  you  also  that  ye  receive  not  the  grace  of  God  in  vain. 
— (For  he  saith,  I have  heard  thee  in  a time  accepted,  and  in  the 
day  of  salvation  have  I succored  thee  : behold,  now  is  the  accepted 
time;  behold,  now  is  the  day  of  salvation.)  — Giving  no  otfence  in 
anything,  that  the  ministry  be  not  blamed  : — But  in  all  things 
approving  ourselves  as  the  ministers  of  God,  in  much  patience,  in 
afflictions,  in  necessities,  in  distresses,  — In  stripes,  in  imprison- 
ments, in  tumults,  in  labors,  in  watchings,  in  fastings;  — By  pure- 
ness, by  knowledge,  by  long-suffering,  by  kindness,  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  by  love  unfeigned, — By  the  word  of  truth,  by  the  power  of 
God,  by  the  armor  of  righteousness  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the 
left,  — By  honor  and  dishonor,  by  evil  report  and  good  report  : as 
deceivers,  and  yet  true;  — As  unknown,  and  yet  well  known;  as 
dying,  and,  behold,  we  live;  as  chastened,  and  not  killed;  — As 
sorrowful,  yet  alway  rejoicing;  as  poor,  yet  making  many  rich  ; as 
having  nothing,  and  yet  possessing  all  things.” 


The  last  chapter  closed  with  the  subject  of  Recon- 
ciliation. It  declared  that  the  atonement  between  God 
and  man  consisted  of  two  parts : God  atoned  to  man 
by  the  work  of  Christ;  man  atoned  to  God  by  the 
work  of  the  Christian  ministry.  For  the  work  of  the 
Christian  minister  presupposes  the  work  of  Christ ; 
and  his  message  is,  God  is  reconciled  to  you,  be  ye 
reconciled  to  God.”  In  this  sixth  chapter,  St.  Paul 
proceeds  with  this  ministry  of  reconciliation.  We  will 
consider  — 

I.  His  appeal. 

II.  The  grounds  of  that  appeal. 

I.  St.  Paul’s  appeal  was,  that  ye  receive  not  the 
grace  of  God  in  vain.”  The  grace  of  Grod.  Grace  is 
favor,  and  the  particular  grace  here  spoken  of  is  the 
reconciliation  of  God  in  Christ  (vs.  14  — 19).  That 


346 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Christ  died  for  all,  and  that  God  is  reconciled  to  all  — 
this  is  the  state  of  Grace.  Now  the  word  grace  being 
exclusively  a Scriptural  one,  is  often  misunderstood, 
and  seems  mysterious  : it  is  supposed  to  be  a mystical 
something  infused  into  the  soul.  But  grace  is  only 
God’s  favor ; and  a state  of  grace  is  the  state  in  which 
all  men  are,  who  have  received  the  message  of  salva- 
tion, which  declares  God’s  goodwill  towards  them.  So 
speaks  St.  Paul  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  The 
Corinthians  had  received  this  grace ; they  were  bap- 
tized into  the  name  of  God  the  Father,  and  Christ 
the  Son.  They  were  told  that  God  was  their  Father 
and  their  Friend.  Now  we  shall  understand  what  St. 
Paul  meant  by  beseeching  them  not  to  receive  that 
grace  in  vain.  It  was  a question  once  discussed  with 
great  theological  vehemence,  whether  men  who  had 
once  been  recipients  of  grace  could  fall  from  it  finally 
and  irrevocably.  Some  replied  warmly  that  they  can, 
while  others,  with  equal  pertinacity,  affirmed  that  it 
was  impossible.  Part  of  the  cause  of  this  disagreement 
may  be  taken  away  by  agreeing  on  the  meaning  of  the 
word  grace.  By  grace  some  meant  the  Spirit  of  God, 
and  they  held,  that  the  soul  which  has  once  become  one 
with  God,  is  His  for  ever.  Undoubtedly  this  has  the 
sanction  of  Scripture  in  various  forms  of  expression. 
For  example,  Fear  not,  little  flock ; for  it  is  your 
Father’s  good  pleasure  to  give  you  the  kingdom : ” ‘‘1 
give  unto  them  eternal  life  ; and  they  shall  never  perish, 
neither  shall  any  man  pluck  them  out  of  my  hand.” 
Again : No  man  is  able  to  pluck  them  out  of  my 

Father’s  hand : ” While  I was  with  them  in  the 
world,  I kept  them  in  thy  name  : those  that  thou  gavest 
me  I have  kept,  and  none  of  them  is  lost,  but  the  son 
of  perdition:  ” Whom  he  did  predestinate,  them  he 
also  called;  and  whom  he  called,  them  he  also  justified  : 
and  whom  he  justified,  them  he  also  glorified.”  We 
cannot  read  these  passages,  without  perceiving  that 
there  is  an  inner  circle  of  men  in  the  Kingdom  of 
Grace,  in  whom  God’s  Spirit  dwells,  who  are  one  with 
God,  in  whom  His  Holy  Ghost  is  a well  of  water 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


347 


springing  up  into  everlasting  Life, — ^Hhe  general  as- 
sembly and  cliurch  of  the  first-born,  which  are  written 
in  heaven.” 

On  the  other  hand,  by  grace  some  meant  that  state 
in  which  all  Christians  are,  as  redeemed  from  the  world 
by  Christ’s  blood,  called  to  be  saints,  and  to  whom  the 
high  privileges  of  God’s  Church  are  revealed.  Now 
it  is  unquestionable,  that  not  all  who  are  recipients  of 
that  grace,  and  redeemed  into  that  mercy,  will  be 
saved.  This  first  verse  itself  implies  that  they  may 
receive  the  grace  of  God  in  vain.  So  says  Christ : 

Every  branch  in  me  that  beareth  not  fruit,  is  hewn 
down  and  cast  into  the  fire.”  Remember,  too,  the 
parable  of  the  fig-tree  in  the  vineyard,  which  was 
unfruitful,  and  was  sentenced.  Again,  such  exhorta- 
tions as  Quench  not  the  Spirit,”  imply  that  He  may 
be  quenched.  And  such  warnings  as  these,  It  is 
impossible  for  those  who  were  once  enlightened,  and 
have  tasted  of  the  heavenly  gift,  and  were  made  par- 
takers of  the  Holy  Ghost,  if  they  shall  fall  away,  to 
renew  them  again  unto  repentance.”  And  again,  ‘‘He 
that  despised  Moses’  law  died  without  mercy.  Of  how 
much  sorer  punishment,  suppose  ye,  shall  he  be  thought 
worthy,  who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of  God?  ” 
— prove  that  this  grace  received,  may  yet  be  received 
in  vain.  These  are  very  awful  passages,  and  they 
prove  at  least,  that  if  there  be  those  in  whom  the  Love 
of  God  is  a perennial  fountain  of  spiritual  strength,  yet 
there  are  also  those  to  whom  all  the  promises  have  been 
made  in  unfeigned  sincerity,  who  have  professed  religion 
with  warmth  — nay,  who  in  Christ’s  name  have  done 
many  wonderful  works  — and  yet  to  whom  He  shall 
declare  at  the  last,  “ I never  knew  you.”  So  near 
may  we  approach  to  the  Kingdom  of  God,  and  yet 
come  short  of  attaining  it ! 

H.  The  grounds  of  the  Apostle’s  appeal : — 

I.  The  thought  that  the  time  of  grace  is  limited. 
St.  Paul  quotes  from  Isaiah  : — “I  have  heard  thee  in 
a time  accepted,  and  in  the  day  of  salvation  have  I 


348 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


succored  tliee.”  Observe  the  principle  on  which  this 
prophecy  is  quoted.  Prophecy  records  tlie  principle  of 
God’s  dealings.  Noav  here  was  a precedent,  declaring 
the  limitation  of  the  time  during  wliich  grace  is  open  ; 
and  St.  Paul  applying  it,  says,  “Now:’’  just  such  a 
a limited  moment  as  there  was  in  Isaiah’s  day,  the  same 
is  now.  Let  us  dwell  upon  this  thought  — that  there 
is  a day  of  grace  : for  example,  the  respite  before  the 
Flood  : My  spirit  shall  not  always  strive  with  man  : 
yet  his  days  shall  be  an  hundred  and  twenty  years.” 
There  was,  then,  a space  allowed  for  repentance. 
Again,  to  Nineveh  was  given  a respite  of  forty 
days.  A year’s  grace  was  allotted  to  the  fig-tree 
in  the  parable.  Jerusalem,  too,  had  such  a day:  “If 
thou  hadst  known,  even  thou,  at  least  in  this  thy 
day,  the  things  which  belong  unto  thy  peace : ” but 
then  her  day  of  grace  was  past ; her  day  of  blindness 
had  come.  Now  that  which  is  declared  of  the  world 
before  the  Flood,  of  Nineveh,  of  the  fig-tree,  of  Jeru- 
salem, is  the  history  of  each  separate  soul.  Every  man 
has  his  day  of  grace  : what  in  vulgar  English  we  should 
call  his  “ chance.”  There  comes  to  each  man  a crisis 
in  his  destiny,  when  evil  influences  have  been  removed, 
or  some  strong  impression  made  — after  an  illness,  or 
an  escape,  or  in  some  season  of  solitary  thoughtfulness 
or  disappointment.  It  were  an  awful  thing  to  watch 
such  a spirit,  if  we  knew  that  he  is  on  the  trial  now, 
by  which  his  everlasting  destiny  is  to  be  decided  ! It 
were  more  awful  still  to  see  a man  who  has  passed  the 
time  of  grace,  and  reached  the  time  of  blindness  : and 
to  know  that  the  light  is  quenched  for  ever ; that  he 
will  go  on  as  before,  and  live  many  years,  and  play  his 
part  in  life ; but  that  the  Spirit  of  God  will  come  back 
to  that  soul  no  more  for  ever ! 

2.  The  second  o-round  on  which  St.  Paul  ur^ed  his 

o ^ ^ o 

appeal,  was  the  earnest  affectionateness  of  his  own  min- 
istry. lie  a|)pealed  on  the  ground  of  the  work  of 
Clirist,  and  on  the  ground  of  the  work  of  those  who 
were  co-operators  with  Christ:  “We,  then,  as  work- 
ers togetlier  with  Him,  beseech  you”  — (v.  1).  Tliis 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


349 


appeal  is  followed  up  by  an  account  of  his  conduct  as 
a fellow- worker  : Giving  no  offence  in  anything,  that 
the  ministry  be  not  blamed  ” — (vi.  3,  4),  which  again 
is  succeeded  by  that  glorious  and  touching  description 
of  ministerial  devotedness,  which  no  Christian  can  read 
without  humiliation.  It  was  the  unexaggerated  picture 
of  a human  life  actually  lived  out  in  this  selfish  world 
of  ours  ! Upon  this  I make  two  observations  : — 

First : The  true  return  for  ministerial  devotedness  is 
a life  given  to  God.  St.  Paul  details  the  circumstances 
of  his  own  rare  ministry,  and  he  asks,  in  return,  not  the 
affection  of  the  Corinthians,  nor  their  admiration,  but 
this  : that  they  receive  not  the  grace  of  God  in  vain  : ” 
and  again  (v.  13),  Now  for  a recompense  in  the 
same  ....  be  ye  also  enlarged.’’  To  all  human 
hearts  affection  is  dear,  and  respect  and  veneration 
precious.  But  none  of  these  things  is  true  payment. 
Hence  St.  Paul  says  : Therefore,  my  brethren,  dearly 
beloved  and  longed  for,  my  joy  and  crown^  so  stand  fast 
in  the  Lord.”  And  again  he  says  : As  also  ye  have 
acknowledged  us  in  part,  that  we  are  your  rejoicing, 
even  as  ye  also  are  ours  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.”, 
And  St.  John,  in  his  Second  Epistle,  writes:  I re- 
joiced greatly  that  I found  of  thy  children  walking  in 
truth;”  and  again,  in  his  Third  Epistle,  he  says  to 
Gains  : I have  no  greater  joy  than  to  hear  that  my 
children  walk  in  truth.”  This,  I do  not  say  is,  but 
ought  to  be,  the  spirit  of  every  minister  of  Christ : to 
feel  that  nothing  can  reward  him  for  such  efforts  as  he 
may  have  been  permitted  to  make  — nothing,  except 
the  grace  of  God  received,  and  life  moulded  in  accord- 
ance with  it.  No  deference,  no  love,  no  enthusiasm 
manifested  for  him,  can  make  up  for  this.  Far  beyond 
all  evil  or  good  report,  his  eye  ought  to  be  fixed  on  one 
thing — God’s  truth,  and  the  reception  of  it. 

Secondly:  The  true  apostolical  succession.  Much 
has  been  said  and  written  to  prove  tlie  ministers  of  the 
Church  to  be  lineally  descended  from  the  Apostles  ; 
and,  further,  to  prove  that  none  but  they  are  commis- 
sioned to  preach  God’s  word,  to  administer  God’s  sacra- 
30 


850 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ments,  or  to  convey  the  grace  of  Christ.  We  do  not 
dispute  this  : we  ratlier  admit  and  assert  it.  For  ])nr- 
poses  of  order,  the  Churcli  requires  a lineal  succession  ; 
that  is,  authority  delegated  by  those  who  have  author- 
ity. But  this  is  a poor  line  of  succession  — to  take  the 
outward  descent  as  all,  and  to  consider  the  inward  as 
nothing.  It  is  the  same  mistake  that  the  Jews  made  in 
tracing  their  descent  from  Abraham’s  person,  and  for- 
getting their  spiritual  descent  from  Abraham’s  Fadier. 
Now  the  grounds  of  apostleship  alleged  here  are  all 
spiritual ; none  are  external.  Again,  in  the  twelfth 
chapter  of  this  Epistle,  St.  Paul  says  : Truly  the 

signs  of  an  apostle  were  wrought  among  you  in  all 
patience,  in  signs,  and  wonders,  and  mighty  deeds.” 
Thus  St.  Paul  does  not  graft  his  riglit  of  appeal  on  any 
proud,  priestly  assumption,  but  on  an  inward  likeness 
to  Christ.  Therefore,  the  true  apostolical  succession, 
is,  and  must  be,  a spiritual  one.  The  power  of  God  is 
not  conveyed  by  physical  contact,  but  by  the  reception 
of  a Spirit.  He  is  a true  minister  who  is  one  from 
sharing  in  the  spirit  of  an  Apostle,  not  from  the  ordina- 
tion and  descent  from  an  Apostle.  True,  there  is  a 
succession.  The  mind  of  Christ,  as  set  forth  in  his 
Apostles,  acts  on  other  minds,  whether  by  ideas  or 
character,  and  produces  likeness  to  itself.  Love  begets 
love ; faith  generates  faith ; lofty  lives  nourish  the 
germs  of  exalted  life  in  others.  There  is  a spiritual 
birth.  John  was  the  successor  of  the  spirit  of  Elias. 
Luther  was  the  offspring  of  the  mind  of  Paul.  We 
are  children  of  Abraham,  if  we  share  in  the  faith  of 
Abraham  ; we  are  the  successors  of  the  Apostles,  if  we 
have  a spirit  similar  to  theirs. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


851 


LECTURE  XL  VII. 

December  26,  1852. 

2 Corinthians,  vi.  11  - 18.  — “0  ye  Corinthians,  our  mouth  is  open 
unto  you,  our  heart  is  enlarged.  — Ye  are  not  straitened  in  us,  but 
ye  are  straitened  in  your  own  bowels.  — Now  for  a recompense  in 
■the  same,  (I  speak  as  unto  my  children,)  be  ye  also  enlarged.  — Be 
ye  not  unequally  yoked  together  with  unbelievers  : for  what  fellow- 
ship hath  righteousness  with  unrighteousness  ? and  what  communion 
hath  light  with  darkness? — And  what  concord  hath  Christ  with 
Belial  ? or  what  part  hath  he  that  believeth  with  an  infidel  ? — And 
what  agreement  hath  the  temple  of  God  with  idols  ? for  ye  are  the 
temple  of  the  living  God;  as  God  hath  said,  I will  dwell  in  them, 
and  walk  in  them;  and  I will  be  their  God,  and  they  shall  be  my 
people.  — Wherefore  come  out  from  among  them,  and  be  ye  separate, 
saith  the  Lord,  and  touch  not  the  unclean  thing;  and  I will  receive 
you,  — And  will  be  a Father  unto  you,  and  ye  shall  be  my  sons  and 
. daughters,  saith  the  Lord  Almighty.” 

In  our  last  lecture  we  saw  that  St.  Paul,  after  ex- 
plaining the  grace  of  God  to  a Avorld  reconciled  in 
Christ,  had  besought  the  Corinthians  not  to  receive  that 
grace  in  vain.  For  a passage  in  Isaiah  assured  them 
that  it  might  be  in  vain  : it  announced  the  awful  truth 
that  there  is  such  a thing  as  a day  of  grace,  and  that 
that  day  is  limited.  Accordingly,  as  an  ambassador 
first,  and  then  as  a fellow-worker  with  God,  in  which 
capacity  he  enumerates  his  sufferings  and  labors,  St. 
Paul  entreats  them  not  to  receive  that  grace  in  vain. 
In  the  close  of  this  chapter,  he  expresses  more  definite- 
ly his  meaning.  For  a general  entreaty  to  become  a 
Christian  is  vague.  Sanctification  is  made  up  of  many 
particulars.  To  use  the  grace  of  God  is  a duty  com- 
posed of  various  branches.  Two  of  these  are  chiefly 
dwelt  on  here.  The  duty  of  separation  from  the  world, 
and  of  purification  from  evil. 

To-day  we  shall  only  consider  the  former. 


352 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


I.  The  exuberance  of  apostolic  affection. 

II.  The  recompense  desired. 

I.  The  Apostle’s  affection  overflows  in  an  exuberant 
apostrophe : O ye  Corinthians,  our  mouth  is  open 

unto  you,  our  heart  is  enlarged”  (v.  11).  His  love 
was  deep,  and  this  flow  of  eloquence  arose  out  of  the 
expansion  of  his  heart.  But,  in  explaining  this,  we 
take  the  second  clause  first,  as  the  former  is  the  result 
of  the  latter. 

First : Our  heart  is  enlarged.”  Now  what  makes 

this  remark  wonderful  in  the  Apostle’s  mouth  is,  that 
St.  Paul  had  received  a multitude  of  provocations  from 
the  Corinthians.  They  had  denied  the  truthfulness  of 
his  ministry,  charged  him  with  interested  motives, 
sneered  at  his  manner,  and  held  up  to  scorn  the  mean- 
ness of  his  appearance.  In  the  face  of  this  his  heart 
expands  ! — partly  with  compassion.  Their  insults  and 
haughty  tone  only  impressed  him  with  a sense  of  their 
need,  with  the  feeling  of  their  wandering  ignorance. 
They  were  his  children.”  How  could  he  resent  even 
unmerited  reproach  from  them,  bound  as  they  were  to 
him  by  so  dear  a tie  ? He  had  suffered  for  them  : He 
pardoned  them,  for  they  did  it  ignorantly.  His  spirit 
sought  for  them  the  only  excuse  it  could.  Thus  spoke 
before  him  One  who  loved  even  more  than  he  : for  the 
same  thought  occurs  in  the  dying  words  of  Christ : 

Father,  forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they 
do.”  How  worthy  a successor  of  his  Master’s  spirit ! 
How  generous  ! What  a well-spring  of  Love,  inex- 
haustible in  its  freshness  as  in  its  life  ! And  this  is  the 
true  test  of  gracious  charity.  Does  the  heart  expand 
or  narrow  as  life  goes  on  ? If  it  narrows,  if  mis- 
conception or  opposition  wither  love,  be  sure  that  that 
love  had  no  root.  If  love  is  slain  by  injury,  or  even 
enmity,  was  it  love  in  its  truest  sense  ? If  ye  love 
them  which  love  you,  what  reward  have  ye  ? do  not 
even  the  ])iiblicans  the  same?”  And  this  love  is 
given  to  all,  partly  from  looking  on  all  as  immortal 
souls  in  Christ.  The  everlasting  principle  within 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


353 


makes  all  the  difference.  For  it  is  not  the  mere  in- 
stinct of  lovingness  which  makes  the  Christian  : — to 
love  the  soul  in  Christ,  imputing  righteousness  to  it 
as  God  does,  knowing  the  powers  it  has  in  it  to  produce 
good  — feeling  what  it  should  be,  and  what  it  may  be- 
come, and  loving  it  as  Christ  loved  it  — this  is  the 
Christian  charity.  Hold  fast  to  love.  If  men  wound 
your  heart,  let  them  not  sour  or  embitter  it ; let  them 
not  shut  up  or  narrow  it ; let  them  only  expand  it  more 
and  more,  and  be  able  always  to  say  with  St.  Paul, 
My  heart  is  enlarged.’' 

Secondly.  St.  Paul’s  eloquence  : Our  mouth  is 

open  unto  you.”  He  might  have  shut  his  lips,  and  in 
dignified  pride  refused  to  plead  his  own  cause.  But 
instead,  he  speaks  his  thoughts  aloud  — freely,  not  cau- 
tiously ; and,  like  Luther  in  after  times,  lays  his  whole 
heart  open  to  view.  This  he  does  in  words  which,  even 
though  a translation,  and  that  translation  from  a lan- 
guage which  was  not  the  Apostle’s  own,  stirs  the  soul 
within  us.  Out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the 
mouth  speaketh.”  Be  sure  that  a man  who  speaks  so, 
has  nothino;  to  conceal.  St.  Paul  had  no  after-thought, 
no  reservation  in  his  life  or  on  his  lips  : he  was  a genu- 
ine man,  true  in  the  innermost  recesses  of  his  spirit. 

H.  The  recompense  desired. 

He  asked  for  the  enlargement  of  their  heart  towards 
him  : which  was  to  be  shown  in  separation  from  the 
world.  This  is  always  a difficult  subject,  yet  it  is  the 
only  true  recompense  of  ministerial  work.  Now,  in 
explaining  any  passage  of  Scripture,  two  things  have  to 
be  done : first,  to  put  ourselves  in  possession  of  the 
circumstances  under  which  the  words  were  spoken,  to 
endeavor  to  realize  the  society,  persons,  feelings  and  cus- 
toms of  the  body  of  men,  and  of  the  time,  to  whom  and 
in  which  the  passage  was  addressed ; secondly,  to  dis- 
cern in  what  point  and  principles  the  passage  corres- 
ponds with  our  circumstances.  For  otherwise  we 
misinterpret  Scripture,  misled  by  words  and  superficial 
resemblances.  This  is  what  Christ  meant  in  His  de- 
30* 


354 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


scrip tion  of  the  wise  Scribe,  who  brings  out  of  his 
treasures  things  new  and  old.’’  For  tlie  great  office  of 
the  expounder  is  to  adapt  old  principles  to  new  circum- 
stances, and  to  read  the  present  through  the  past. 

First,  then,  let  us  comprehend  the  words  and  the 
circumstances  to  which  they  applied.  We  take  the 
passage,  Be  ye  not  unequally  yoked  together  with 
unbelievers.”  Here  the  metaphor  is  drawn  from  two 
ill-matched  animals  dragging  the  same  vehicle  or 
plough  : two  animals  of  different  sizes  or  tempers,  who 
pull  either  different  ways,  or  with  different  degrees  of 
speed.  The  plain  import,  then,  of  the  figurative  ex- 
pression is  — Separate  from  the  unbelievers,  avoid  close 
intimacy  with  them.  “ Come  out  from  among  them, 
and  be  ye  separate,  saith  the  Lord,  and  touch  not  the 
unclean  thing.” 

Next,  let  us  consider  the  circumstances.  Bear  in 
mind  what  we  learnt  in  the  First  Epistle  : — one  of  the 
great  parties  at  Corinth  was  the  party  of  liberty.” 
They  knew  the  freeness  of  Christ’s  Gospel ; they  under- 
stood that  the  distinction  of  days  was  done  away  with, 
that  there  was  no  difference  between  clean  and  unclean 
meats,  that  flesh  offered  to  idols  was  not  polluted. 
They  comprehended  that  all  the  Jewish  ceremonial  holi- 
ness was  but  typical,  and  that  the  separateness  of  touch 
not,  taste  not,  handle  not,”  was  done  away  with.  Now 
the  danger  which  these  persons  incurred  was,  that, 
breaking  down  every  barrier,  they  left  nothing  between 
themselves  and  evil.  They  prided  themselves  on  their 
liberty,  they  went  to  idol  feasts,  they  treated  Saturday 
like  Monday,  they  mixed  freely  with  the  world.  Appa- 
rently, they  were  not  even  afraid  to  marry  with  the 
heathen  ; and  in  this  daring  admixture,  and  unrestrained 
indulgence  in  all  things  permitted,  they  ran  the  risk  of 
gradually  imbibing  the  spirit  and  temper  of  the  world  of 
evil  with  which  they  mingled.  Accordingly,  Be  ye 
not  unequally  yoked,”  meant,  Beware  of  sharing  in 
the  vices  and  coi-rnption  of  the  heathen.” 

Secondly,  let  us  consider  liow  to  apply  this  injunction 
to  oui*  own  times.  Clearly  the  letter  of  tlie  command  is 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


355 


inapplicable  . for  in  two  points,  at  least,  the  parallel 
does  not  hold.  First,  heathen  feasts  do  not  exist  among 
ns.  In  the  days  of  the  Apostle  they  were  connected 
with  abominable  profligacy.  And  again,  there  is  no 
sharp  and  marked  distinction  now,  as  there  was  then, 
between  those  who  are,  and  those  who  are  not,  on  the 
side  of  Christ.  At  that  time  baptism  severed  mankind 
into  two  great  bodies,  the  world  and  the  Church.  But 
now,  all  being  baptized,  the  command,  Be  ye  not 
unequally  yoked  with  unbelievers,’’  cannot  mean  the 
same  thing  as  it  did  then.  Therefore,  only  the  spirit 
of  the  injunction  can  be  applied  to  us.  We  may  discern 
this  from  considering  the  grounds  and  reasons  of  the 
prohibition.  Independent  of  the  impossibility  of  agree- 
ment in  the  deepest  sympathies,  independent  of  there 
being  no  identity  of  tastes,  no  identity  of  antipathies, 
there  were  two  strong  grounds  for  this  command. 

1.  The  first  ground  was  Immorality  : What  fellow- 
ship hath  righteousness  with  unrighteousness  ? ” In 
England  we  are  an  inconsistent  people.  A rigid  bar- 
rier exists  between  class  and  class,  and  is  almost  never 
broken,  except  in  two  instances  : wealth  and  talent 
break  it  down.  Let  a man  amass  enormous  wealth,  and 
he  will  find  at  his  board  the  noblest  in  the  land.  It 
matters  not  that  he  became  rich  in  some  questionable 
way,  that  shrewd  suspicions  are  entertained  of  foul 
practices  and  unfair  means : no  one  asks  about  that. 
Again,  talent  of  a certain  class  — that  talent  which 
amuses  — breaks  down  the  rigid  line  of  demarcation. 
Tlie  accomplished  man  or  woman  who,  thougli  noto- 
riously profligate,  can  wile  away  an  evening,  is  tolerated 
— nay,  courted  — even  in  the  Christian  drawing-room. 
Now,  understand  me,  I do  not  say  that  the  breaking 
down  of  conventional  barriers  is  undesirable.  If  good- 
ness did  it  — if  a man,  low  in  birth,  were  admired  be- 
cause of  his  virtues  — oh  ! it  would  be  well  for  this  land 
of  ours  ! But  where  wealth  and  talent,  irrespective  of 
goodness,  alone  possess  the  key  to  unlock  our  English 
exclusiveness,  there  plainly  the  apostolic  injunction 
holds,  because  the  reason  of  it  holds  : What  fellow- 


35G 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTT.ES 


ship  hath  rigliteousness  witli  unrighteousness  ? Separate, 
tlien,  cut  yourself  adrift  from  tlie  profligate  man  of 
wealth,  from  the  immoral  man  of  talent.  If  you  must 
have  dealing  with  them,  let  it  be  only  in  the  way  of 
business ; but  no  intimacy,  no  friendship  with  tliem 
should  be  yours. 

2.  The  second  ground  was  Irreligion : What  part 
hath  he  that  believeth  with  an  infldel  ? ” There  is 
much  danger,  however,  in  applying  this  law.  It  is 
perilous  work  when  men  begin  to  decide  who  are  be- 
lievers and  who  are  not,  if  they  decide  by  party  badges. 
A man  worships  in  a certain  congregation,  is  taught  by 
a certain  minister,  does  not  subscribe  to  certain  societies ; 
whereupon  by  that  which  arrogates  to  itself  the  title  of 
the  religious  world,”  he  is  at  once  pronounced  an  un- 
believer, and  not  a Christian.  This  spirit  besets  our 
age,  it  is  rife  in  this  town,  and  demands  the  earnest  pro- 
test of  lip  and  life  from  every  true  man.  For  nothing 
more  surely  eats  out  the  heart  of  religion,  which  is  love, 
than  this  spirit  of  religious  exclusiveness,  and  of  judg- 
ing others.  Nothing  more  surely  brings  out  the  natural, 
innate  popery  of  the  heart.  Better,  far  better  than 
this,  is  it  to  risk  the  charge,  falsely  brought,  which 
Christ  endured,  of  being  worldly,  a friend  of  publi- 
cans and  sinners.”  Nevertheless,  there  is  an  irreligion 
which  ‘‘  he  who  runs  may  read.”  For  the  atheist  is 
not  merely  he  who  professes  unbelief,  but,  strictly 
speaking,  every  one  who  lives  without  God  in  the 
world.  And  the  heretic  is  not  merely  he 'who  has  mis- 
taken some  Christian  doctrine,  but  rather  he  who  causes 
divisions  among  the  brethren.  And  the  idolater  is  not 
merely  he  who  worships  images,  but  he  who  gives  his 
heart  to  something  which  is  less  than  God  ; for  a man’s 
god  is  that  which  has  his  whole  soul  and  worship,  that 
which  lie  obeys  and  reverences  as  his  highest.  Now 
there  are  innumerable  doubtful  cases  where  charity  is 
bound  to  hope  for  the  best;  but  there  is  also  abundance 
of  ])lain  cases  : for  where  a man’s  god  is  money,  or  posi- 
tion ill  socic^ty,  or  rank,  there  the  rule  holds,  ‘‘  Come 
ye  apart.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


857 


This,  then,  is  the  spirit  of  the  passage  : — A law  holds 
wherever  the  reason  of  it  holds.  Wherever  union  in 
the  highest  cannot  be,  wherever  idem  velle^  atque  idem 
nolle^  is  impossible,  there  friendship  and  intimate  part- 
nership must  not  be  tried.  One  word,  liowever,  as  to 
the  mode  of  this  separation.  It  is  not  to  be  attained  by 
an  affectation  of  outward  separateness.  The  spirit  of 
vanity  and  worldly  pride  is  not  avoided  by  the  outward 
plainness  of  Quakerism.  Beneath  the  Quaker’s  sober, 
unworldly  garb,  there  may  be  the  canker  of  the  love  of 
gain  ; and  beneath  the  guise  of  peace,  there  may  be  the 
combative  spirit,  which  is  worse  than  War.  Nor  can 
you  get  rid  of  worldliness  by  placing  a ban  on  particu- 
lar places  of  entertainment,  and  particular  societies. 
The  world  is  a spirit  rather  than  a form  ; and  just  as  it 
is  true  that  wherever  two  or  three  are  met  together  in 
His  name,  God  is  in  the  midst  of  them,  so  if  your  heart 
is  at  one  with  His  Spirit,  you  may^  in  the  midst  of 
worldly  amusements  — yet  not  without  great  danger, 
for  you  will  have  multiplied  temptations  — keep  your- 
self unspotted  from  the  World. 


358 


LECTUKElS  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  XLVIII. 

January  2,  1853. 

2 CoRiNTiiiANS,  vii.  1.  — “ Having  therefore  these  promises,  dearly  be- 
loved, let  us  cleanse  ourselves  from  all  filthiness  of  the  flesh  and 
spirit,  perfecting  holiness  in  the  fear  of  God.  ’ ’ 

The  recompense  which  St.  Paul  asked  in  return  for 
his  exuberant  affection  towards  the  Corinthians,  was 
defined  in  our  last  lecture  in  two  particulars : 1.  Sepa- 
ration from  the  world.  2.  Separation  from  all  unclean- 
ness. These  were  to  be  his  reward ; it  was  these  the 
Apostle  longed  for.  It  was  not  affection  for  himself 
that  he  desired,  but  devotion  to  God.  We  took  the 
first  part  last  Sunday,  — unworldliness,  or  separation 
from  the  world.  To-day  we  will  consider  the  second 
part  of  the  recompense  he  asked,  — Personal  Purifi- 
cation. 

First,  then,  as  to  the  ground  of  the  request : Hav- 

ing these  promises.”  Now  these  promises  are : the 
In-dwelling  of  God ; His  free  reception  of  us ; His 
Fatherhood  and  our  sonship  : and  they  are  contained 
in  the  sixteenth,  seventeenth,  and  eighteenth  verses  of 
the  sixth  chapter.  But,  first,  observe  the  Gospel  prin- 
ciple of  action  : it  is  not.  Separate  yourself  from  all 
uncleanness  in  order  that  you  may  ffet  a right  of  sonship  ; 
but.  Because  ye  are  sons  of  God,  therefore  be  pure.  It 
is  not.  Work  in  order  to  be  saved  ; but.  Because  you  are 
saved,  therefore  work  out  your  salvation.  It  is  not.  Labor 
tliat  you  may  be  accepted  ; but.  Labor,  because  you  are 
accepted  in  the  I^eloved.  Christian  action  advances  from 
the  right  of  the  sonship,  to  the  fact  of  sonship,  and  not 
vice  versa.  In  other  words:  Ye  are  the  sons  of  God  : 
liereare  God’s  ])romises  ; therefore  become  what  you  are 
rcK^koiK^d  to  be  : let  the  righteousness  which  is  imputed  to 
you  become  I’igliteousness  in  you.  ‘‘‘  Ye  are  the  temple 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


359 


of  God : ” therefore  cleanse  yourself.  God  is  your 
Father,  therefore  be  pure.  Thus  we  see  that  St.  Paul 
first  lays  down  Christian  privileges,  and  then  demands 
Christian  action ; and  in  this  the  mode  of  the  Law  is 
reversed.  The  Law  says  : This  do,  and  thou  shalt 
live.”  The  Gospel  says  : This  do,  because  thou  art 
redeemed.”  We  are  to  work,  not  in  order  to  win  life, 
but  because  life  is  already  given.  Only  so  far  as  we 
teach  this  principle,  do  we  teach  Christ’s  Gospel : it  is 
salvation  by  grace,  salvation  by  free  grace,  salvation  by 
sovereign  grace  ; it  is  God’s  favor  freely  given,  without 
money  and  without  price  ; not  for  worth,  or  goodness, 
or  merit  of  ours.  So  speaks  St.  Paul : ‘‘  After  that  the 
kindness  and  love  of  God  our  Saviour  toward  man  ap- 
peared, not  by  works  of  righteousness  which  we  have 
done,  but  according  to  His  mercy  He  saved  us.” 

We  all  know  the  power  and  force  of  this  kind  of  ap- 
peal. You  know  there  are  some  things  a soldier  will 
not  do,  because  he  is  a soldier : he  is  in  uniform,  and  he 
cannot  disgrace  his  corps.  There  are  some  things  of 
which  a man  of  high  birth  and  lineage  is  incapable : a 
long  line  of  ancestry  is  a guarantee  for  his  conduct  : 
he  has  a character  to  sustain.  Precisely  on  this  ground 
is  the  Gospel  appeal  made  to  us.  Ye  are  priests  and 
kings  to  God : will  you  forget  your  office,  and  fall  from 
your  kingship?  Shall  an  heir  of  glory  disgrace  his 
heavenly  lineage  ? Ye  are  God’s  temple,  in  which  He 
dwells : will  you  pollute  that  ? Observe  on  what  strong 
grounds  we  stand  when  we  appeal  to  men  as  having  been 
baptized.  St.  Paul  spoke  to  all  the  Corinthians  as  being 
the  temple  of  God.  Now,  if  baptism  were  a magical  cere- 
mony, or  if  it  were  a conditional  blessing,  so  that  a 
baptized  child  were  only  God’s  child  hypothetically, 
how  could'  I appeal  to  this  congregation  ? But  since  I 
am  certain  and  sure,  that  every  man  whom  I address  is 
God’s  child,  that  his  baptism  declared  a fact  wliich  al- 
ready existed,  and  that  he  is  a recipient  of  God’s  loving 
influences,  I,  as  Christ’s  minister,  can  and  must  say : 

Having,  therefore,  these  promises,  dearly  beloved,  let 
us  cleanse  ourselves  from  all  filthiness  of  the  flesh  and 


360 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


spirit,  perfecting  holiness  in  the  fear  of  God.”  I can 
say  to  every  one  of  you : Ye  are  tlie  temple  of  God, 
therefore  keep  God’s  dwelling  pure.” 

Secondly,  let  us  consider  the  request  itself.  St.  Paul 
demanded  their  holiness,  that  is,  their  separation  from 
impurity ; for  holiness,  or  sanctification  meant,  in  the 
Jewish  language,  separation.  In  Jewish  literalness,  it 
meant  separation  from  external  defilement.  But  the 
thing  imj)lied  by  this  typical  separation  was  that  in- 
ward holiness  of  which  St.  Paul  here  speaks.  We 
must  keep  ourselves  apart,  then,  not  only  from  sensual, 
but  also  from  spiritual  defilement.  The  Jewish  law 
required  only  the  purification  of  the  flesh ; the  Gospel, 
which  is  the  inner  spirit  of  the  Law,  demands  the  puri- 
fication of  the  spirit.  The  distinction  is  made  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews:  ‘‘For  if  the  blood  of  bulls 
and  of  goats,  and  the  ashes  of  an  heifer  sprinkling  the 
unclean,  sanctifieth  to  the  purifying  of  the  flesh  : How 
much  more  shall  the  blood  of  Christ,  who  through 
the  eternal  Spirit  offered  himself  without  spot  to  God, 
purge  your  conscience  from  dead  works  to  serve  the 
living  God?”  Concerning  the  former,  I will  say  but 
little  now.  There  is  a contamination  which  passes 
through  the  avenue  of  the  senses,  and  sinks  into  the 
spirit.  Who  shall  dislodge  it  thence  ? Hear,”  said 
Christ,  “and  understand:  Not  that  which  goeth.into 
the  mouth  defileth  a man  ; but  that  which  cometh  out 
of  the  mouth,  this  defileth  a man.”  “For  out  of  the 
heart  proceed  evil  thoughts.”  The  heart — the  heart 
— there  is  the  evil ! The  imagination,  which  was  given 
to  spiritualize  the  senses,  is  often  turned  into  a means  of 
sensualizing  the  spirit.  Beware  of  reverie,  and  indul- 
gence in  forbidden  images,  unless  you  would  introduce 
into  your  bosom  a serpent,  which  will  creep,  and  crawl, 
and  leave  the  veiiom  of  its  windings  in  your  heart. 

And  now  what  is  the  remedy  for  this?  How  shall 
we  avoid  evil  thoughts  ? First : By  the  fear  of  God  — 
“ Our  God  is  a consuming  lire.”  Compare  with  this  : 
“ For  the  word  of  God  is  quick,  and  powerful,  and 
sharper  than  any  two-(‘xlged  sword,  piercing  even  to  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIAN’S. 


861 


dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit,  and  of  the  joints 
and  marrow,  and  is  a discerner  of  the  thoughts  and 
intents  of  the  heart.”  An  awful  thought ! a Living 
God,  infinitely  pure,  is  conscious  of  your  contaminated 
thoughts  ! So  the  only  true  courage  sometimes  comes 
from  fear.  We  cannot  do  without  awe;  there  is  no 
depth  of  character  without  it.  Tender  motives  are  not 
enough  to  restrain  from  sin  ; yet  awe  is  not  enough. 
Love  and  Hope  will  keep  us  strong  against  passion,  as 
they  kept  our  Saviour  strong  in  suffering,  who  for 
the  joy  that  was  set  before  Him  endured  the  cross, 
despising  the  shame.” 

Secondly  : By  the  promises  of  God.  Think  of  what 
you  are  — a child  of  God,  an  heir  of  Heaven.  Realize 
the  grandeur  of  saintliness,  and  you  will  shrink  from 
degrading  your  soul  and  debasing  your  spirit.  It  is 
in  reading  saintly  lives,  that  we  are  ashamed  of  grovel- 
ling desires.  To  come  down,  however,  from  these 
sublime  motives  to  simple  rules,  I say,  first  of  all,  then, 
cultivate  all  generous  and  high  feelings.  A base  appe- 
tite may  be  expelled  by  a nobler  passion  ; the  invasion 
of  a country  has  sometimes  waked  men  from  low  sen- 
suality, has  roused  them  to  deeds  of  self-sacrifice,  and 
left  no  access  for  the  baser  passions.  An  honorable 
affection  can  quench  low  and  indiscriminate  vice. 

This  I say,  then.  Walk  in  tlie  spirit,  and  ye  shall  not 
fulfil  the  lusts  of  the  flesh.”  I say,  secondly.  Seek 
exercise  and  occupation.  If  a man  finds  himself  haunted 
by  evil  desires  and  unholy  images,  which  will  generally 
be  at  periodical  hours,  let  him  commit  to  memory  pas- 
sages of  Scripture,  or  passages  from  the  best  writers  in 
verse  or  prose.  Let  him  store  his  mind  with  these,  as 
safeguards  to  repeat,  when  he  lies  awake  in  some  rest- 
less night,  or  when  despairing  imaginations,  or  gloomy, 
suicidal  thoughts,  beset  him.  Let  these  be  to  him  the 
sword,  turning  everywhere  to  keep  the  way  of  the 
Garden  of  Life  from  the  intrusion  of  profaner  foot- 
steps. 

Lastly : Observe  the  entireness  of  this  severance 
from  evil  — ‘‘perfecting  holiness.”  Perfection  means, 
31 


3G2 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


then,  entireness,  in  opposition  to  one-sidedness.  Tliis 
is  plain  from  many  passages  of  Scri])ture.  Tims:  ‘^Be 
ye  therefore  perfect,  even  as  your  Father,  which  is  in 
lieaven,  is  perfect.”  Again,  it  is  not  ^‘Love  them  which 
love  you,”  but  Love  your  enemies.”  Again:  Tliis 
also  we  wish,  even  your  perfection:  ” Not  as  though 
I had  already  attained,”  says  St.  Paul,  either  were 
already  perfect : ” and  here  he  says,  perfecting  holi- 
ness.” Thi§  expression  seems  to  be  suggested  by  the 
terms  flesh  and  sjnrit ; for  the  purification  of  the  fiesh 
alone  would  not  be  perfect,  but  superficial,  holiness. 
Christian  sanctification,  therefore,  is  an  entire  and 
whole  thing ; it  is  nothing  less  than  presenting  the 
whole  man  a sacrifice  to  Christ.  I pray  God  your 
whole  spirit  and  soul  and  body  be  preserved  blame- 
less.” For  we  should  greatly  mistake,  if  we  supposed 
the  Apostle  meant  here  only  one  class  of  sins,  when 
he  speaks  of  purifying  ourselves  from  all  filthiness 
in  fiesh  and  spirit : ” for  what  are  they  which  in 
Christ’s  catalogue  defile  the  man  ? They  are  thefts, 
blasphemies,  evil  witness,  murders,  as  well  as  what  we 
especially  call  sins  of  uncleanness. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


363 


LECTURE  XLIX. 


January  26,  1853. 

2 Corinthians,  vii.  2-8.  — “ Receive  us  ; we  have  wronged  no  man, 
we  have  corrupted  no  man , we  have  defrauded  no  man.  — I speak 
not  this  to  condemn  you  : for  I have  said  before,  that  ye  are  in  our 
hearts  to  die  and  live  with  you.  — Great  is  my  boldness  of  speech 
toward  you,  great  is  my  glorying  of  }^ou  : I am  filled  with  comfort, 
I am  exceeding  joyful  in  all  our  tribulation.  — For  when  we  were 
come  into  Macedonia,  our  flesh  had  no  rest,  but  we  were  troubled  on 
every  side;  without  were  fightings,  within  were  fears.  — Neverthe- 
less God,  that  comforteth  those  that  are  cast  down,  comforted  us  by 
the  coming  of  Titus  ; — And  not  by  his  coming  only,  but  by  the  con- 
solation wherewith  he  was  comforted  in  you,  when  he  told  us  your 
earnest  desire,  your  mourning,  your  fervent  mind  toward  me;  so 
that  I rejoiced  the  more.  — For  though  I made  you  sorry  with  a let- 
ter, I do  not  repent,  though  I did  repent  : for  I perceive  that  the 
same  epistle  hath  made  you  sorry,  though  it  were  but  for  a season.’* 

The  remainder  of  tins  chapter,  which  we  began  last 
Sunday,  is  almost  entirely  personal,  having  reference  to 
the  relations  existing  between  St.  Paul  and  the  Corin- 
thian Church.  In  the  sixth  chapter  he  had  spoken  of  his 
expressed  affection  towards  them,  and  asked  for  a return. 
That  return  is  contained  in  the  words,  Be  ye  recon- 
ciled to  God.”  We  found  that  the  reconciliation  itself 
consisted  of  two  particulars  — separation  from  the  world, 
and  separation  from  all  impurity.  Subordinate  to  this 
is  a request  for  the  only  personal  acknowledgment  and 
recompense  they  could  make  for  his  affection  : Re- 

ceive us,”  said  St.  Paul : let  there  be  an  affectionate 
understanding  between  us.”  Our  subject  to-day,  there- 
fore, chiefly  bears  on  St.  Paul’s  personal  character,  — 
his  feelings  and  ministerial  conduct. 


I.  The  ground  on  which  he  urged  this  request. 
II.  The  grounds  on  which  he  hoped  it. 


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LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


I.  He  urged  it  on  the  ground  that  he  deserved  it.  It 
was  a simple  matter  of  justice.  We  liave  wronged  no 
man,  we  have  corrupted  no  man,  we  hav.e  defrauded 
no  man.”  Recollect  the  charges  alleged  against  him: 
venality  ; preaching  the  Gospel  for  gain  ; and  the  accu- 
sation of  the  false  teachers,  who  said,  He  lias  over- 
reached you  — taken  you  in.”  Now  the  Apostle  meets 
these  charges  simply  by  an  assertion  of  his  innocence, 
but  an  assertion  which  appealed  at  the  same  time  to 
their  own  witness.  No  one  who  read  those  words  could 
doubt  whether  he  was  guilty,  for  there  is  a certain  tone 
in  innocence  not  easily  mistaken.  There  are  some 
voices  that  ring  true.  This  reminds  us  of  Samuel’s 
purgation  of  himself  when  laying  down  his  judgeship. 
A worthy  close ! Two  precedents  are  these,  most 
worthy  of  thought,  both  for  ministerial  and  secular  life. 
Only  consider  how  great  in  Samuel’s  case,  and  in  St. 
Paul’s,  was  the  influence  of  integrity  ! There  is  noth- 
ing from  which  it  so  much  behoves  a public  servant  — 
especially  one  in  a sacred  office  — to  be  perfectly  free,  as 
from  the  very  suspicion  of  interested  motives.  If  he 
cannot  say  openly,  and  to  his  own  heart,  I have  not 
been  bribed  either  by  the  hope  of  favor  or  popularity,  or 
by  the  dread  of  offending  ; neither  personal  fear,  nor 
personal  hope,  has  ever  shaped  one  sentence,  or  modified 
one  tone,  or  kept  back  one  truth,”  he  may  rest  assured 
his  work  cannot  stand.  Honesty,  uprightness,  integrity 
of  character,  are  sometimes  called  mere  moral  virtues  : 
and  religious  people  are  too  often  deficient  in  these 
points  : but  the  bright  honor  of  the  Apostle  Paul  was 
never  stained.  He  could  say,  I have  wronged  no 
man.”  There  is,  however,  one  touch  of  graceful  deli- 
cacy in  the  way  he  made  this  assertion  of  his  innocence, 
which  must  not  be  passed  over,  if  we  would  rightly 
appreciate  the  character  of  St.  Paul.  A coarser  and 
ruder  man  would  have  cared  for  nothing  but  the  proof 
of  his  own  integrity.  Now  St.  Paul  perceived  that  the 
broad  assertion  of  this  might  give  pain.  It  might  cover 
with  confusion  those  wlio  had  suspected  him.  It  might 
seem  to  them  as  if  this  were  spoken  at  them  in  indirect 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


reproach . It  might  even  wound  those  who  had  not 
suspected  him,  as  if  his  protest  were  a bitter  reflection 
upon  them.  Therefore,  he  adds,  I speak  not  this  to 
condemn  you  ; ’’  that  is,  I am  not  defending  myself 
against  you,  but  to  you.  I am  not  reproaching  you  for 
past  injustice  : I only  say  these  things  to  assure  you  of 
my  undiminished  love.’’ 

There  was  one  thing  in  the  character  of  St.  Paul, 
which  often  escapes  observation.  Carlyle  calls  him 

an  unkempt  Apostle  Paul ; ” and  some  say  of  him, 
‘‘  He  was  a man  rude,  brave,  true,  unpolished.”  We  all 
know  his  integrity,  his  truth,  his  daring,  his  incorrupti- 
ble honesty.  But  besides  these,  there  was  a refined  and 
delicate  courtesy,  which  was  for  ever  taking  off  the  edge 
of  his  sharpest  rebukes,  and  sensitively  anticipating 
every  pain  his  words  might  give : so  that  to  have  been 
rebuked  by  him  would  have  been  less  painful  than  to  be 
praised  by  most  other  men.  Remember  the  exquisite 
courtesy  with  which  his  request  to  Philemon  is  put. 
Remember  the  delicate  exception  in  his  answer  to 
Agrippa : would  to  God  that  not  only  thou,  but  also 

all  that  hear  me  this  day,  were  both  almost,  and  alto- 
gether such  as  I am,  except  these  bonds.”  Remember, 
too,  how  he  pours  love  over  one  of  his  strongest  con- 
demnations in  Philippians  : For  many  walk,  of  whom 
I have  told  you  often,  and  now  Ull  you  even  weeping^ 
that  they  are  the  enemies  of  the  cross  of  Christ.”  This 
is  something  of  the  tender  tact,  the  Christian  art,  which 
marks  the  character  of  this  Apostle.  Observe,  it  is 
only  Love  which  can  give  that.  It  was  not  high  breed- 
ing ; it  was  rather  good  breeding.  High  breeding 
gracefully  insists  on  its  own  rights  ; good  breeding 
gracefully  remembers  the  rights  of  others.  We  have 
all  seen  that  dignifled  courtesy  which  belongs  to  high 
birth,  which  never  offends  as  long  as  it  is  not  personally 
harmed.  But  we  know  that  that  will  not  last : provoca- 
tion makes  it  as  bitter  and  as  vulgar  as  the  breeding  of 
the  most  uncultured  mechanic.  Far  — far  above  this, 
is  the  polish  which  the  highest  Christianity  gives  to  the 


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LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


heart.  It  is  not  gentility,”  but  gentleness.  It  is  the 
wisdom  from  above,  which  is  first  pure,  then  rjentle. 

There  is  a rough,  rude,  straightforward  honesty 
which  is  just  and  upright,  which  can  say  these  words  as 
St.  Paul  did:  ‘‘I  have  wronged  no  man.”  Perforce 
we  respect  such  integrity.  But  Christianity  requires 
something  more  : not  gold  only,  but  gold  thrice  refined  ; 
not  a building  of  precious  stones  only,  but  of  exquisite 
polish  also  ; for  there  is  a rough  way,  and  a gentle  way, 
of  being  true.  Do  not  think  that  Christian  polish 
weakens  character,  as  polish  thins  the  diamond.  The 
polish  of  the  world  not  only  saps  strength  of  char- 
acter, but  makes  it  even  unnatural.  Look  at  St.  Paul, 
with  all  that  grace  of  a feeling  almost  feminine  in  its 
sensitiveness  — was  there  ever  anything  in  human  char- 
acter more  daringly  impassioned,  more  full  of  noble 
energy  and  childlike  impulsiveness  ! That  is  what  the 
grace  of  Christ  can  do. 

II.  The  grounds  for  the  Apostle’s  hope  of  a good 
understanding  with  the  Corinthians.  To  put  it  in  one 
word : he  rested  it  on  his  candor ; he  hoped  it,  be- 
cause he  had  been  true  with  them  in  all  his  dealings  : 

Great  is  my  boldness  ” — that  is,  freedom  — of 
speech  toward  you.”  But  let  us  explain.  When  we 
were  going  through  the  First  Epistle,  we  found  that  a 
scandalous  crime  had  been  committed  by  a Corinthian 
Christian ; it  was  the  crime  of  incest.  Now  consider 
the  difficulty  in  which  St.  Paul  was  placed.  If  he  re- 
buked the  Corinthians,  he  would  probably  destroy  his 
own  interest,  and  irreparably  offend  them.  If  he  left 
the  crime  unnoticed,  he  might  seem  to  connive  at  it,  or 
gloss  it  over.  Besides  this,  the  subject  was  a delicate 
one  to  enter  upon  : it  touched  family  honor  and  family 
feelings.  Might  it  not  be  wise  to  leave  the  wound 
uriprobed  ? Moreover,  we  all  know  how  hard  it  is  to 
deal  harshly  with  tlie  sins  of  those  we  love,  of  those 
to  whom  we  are  indebted,  or  who  are  indebted  to  us. 

Any  of  these  considerations  might  have  made  a less 
straightforward  man  silent.  But  St.  Paul  did  not  hesi- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


367 


tate  : he  wrote  off  at  once  that  First  Epistle,  which 
goes  into  the  matter  fully,  with  no  false  delicacy  — 
calling  wrong,  wrong,  and  laying  upon  those  who  per- 
mitted it,  and  honored  it,  their  full  share  of  blame. 
Scarcely,  however,  had  the  Apostle  written  the  Epistle, 
and  irrevocably  sent  it,  than  misgivings  began  to  cross 
his  mind,  as  we  see  in  the  eighth  verse,  where  he  says, 

I did  repent.”  To  some  persons  this  would  be  per- 
plexing. They  cannot  understand  how  an  inspired 
Apostle  could  regret  what  he  had  done  : if  it  were  by 
Inspiration,  what  room  could  there  be  for  misgivings  ? 
And  if  he  regretted  an  act  done  under  God’s  guidance, 
just  as  any  common  man  might  regret  a foolish  act,  how 
could  the  Apostle  be  inspired  ? But  this,  which  might 
perplex  some,  exhibits  the  very  beauty  and  naturalness 
of  the  whole  narrative.  God’s  inspiration  does  not 
take  a man  and  make  a passive  machine  of  him,  as  a 
musician  might  use  a flute,  breathing  through  it  what 
tones  he  pleases,  while  the  flute  itself  is  unconscious, 
unresisting,  and  un-codperating.  When  God  inspires, 
His  Spirit  mixes  with  the  spirit  of  man,  in  the  form  of 
thought,  not  without  struggles  and  misgivings  of  the 
human  element.  Otherwise  it  would  not  be  human  : 
it  would  not  be  inspiration  of  the  man,  but  simply 
a Divine  echo  through  the  man.  Very  beautiful  is  this 
account  of  the  inspired  letter  of  St.  Paul  to  the  Corin- 
thians ; so  real,  so  human,  so  natural ! 

These  misgivings  lasted  a considerable  time.  In  the 
twelfth  verse  of  the  second  chapter,  we  learn  that  at 
Troas  they  had  not  subsided.  He  went  there  on  his 
way  to  Macedonia,  in  order  the  sooner  to  meet  Titus, 
with  the  reply  from  the  Corinthians ; and  in  this  chap- 
ter we  learn  that  these  doubts  had  even  gathered 
strength  : For,  when  we  were  come  into  Macedonia, 
our  flesh  had  no  rest,  but  we  were  troubled  on  every 
side  ; without  were  fightings,  within  were  fears.”  Here 
I make  a remark  by  the  way  : It  is  by  passages  such  as 
these  alone,  that  we  can  appreciate  and  understand  the 
real  trials  of  apostles  and  missionaries.  Here  was  a 
journey  from  Asia  to  Corinth,  through  various  places. 


8G8 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Now  the  obvious  trials  of  such  a course  all  could  com- 
prehend. Perils  by  sea ; perils  from  the  Jews ; perils 
from  governors  ; perils  of  travel  ; hardships  and  priva- 
tions : these  were  the  trifles  which  tried  a spirit  like  St. 
Paul’s.  For  it  is  not  hardships  that  are  the  wearing 
work  of  life.  It  is  anxiety  of  heart  and  mind  ; it  is 
the  fretting,  carking  cares  of  deep  solicitude : one  sor- 
row, one  deep,  corroding  anxiety,  will  wear  deeper 
furrows  in  a cheek  and  brow,  than  ten  campaigns  can 
do.  One  day’s  suspense  will  exhaust  more,  and  leave 
the  cheek  paler,  than  a week’s  fasting.  Thus  it  is  a low 
estimate  of  the  depth  of  apostolic  trial  to  say,  that 
physical  suffering  was  its  chief  element.  And  if  this 
be  true,  how  much  more  degrading  is  it  so  to  treat  of 
the  Sufferings  of  Christ,  of  whom  the  Prophet  said  : 

He  shall  see  of  the  travail  of  His  soul^  and  be  satis- 
fied.” We  degrade  His  Life  and  Death  by  pictures  of 
His  physical  suffering  and  His  bodily  agony  on  the 
Cross.  For  it  was  not  the  nails  that  pierced  His  hands 
which  wrung  from  Him  the  exceeding  bitter  cry,  but 
the  iron  that  had  entered  into  His  soul. 

To  return  from  this  digression.  In  Macedonia  St. 
Paul  met  Titus,  bearing  a letter  from  the  Corinthians, 
by  which  it  appeared  that  his  rebuke  had  done  its  work. 
Instead  of  alienating,  it  had  roused  them  to  earnest- 
ness : they  had  purged  themselves  of  complicity  in  the 
guilt,  by  the  punishment  and  excommunication  of  the 
offender.  This  was  the  Apostle’s  comfort ; and  on  this 
ground  he  built  his  sanguine  hope  that  the  Corinthians 
would  receive  him,  and  that  there  would  be  no  more 
misunderstanding  — v.  7.  Now  let  us  see  the  personal 
aj)])lication  — tlie  principles  derivable  from  these  facts. 

First,  I infer  the  value  of  explanations.  Had  St.  Paul 
left  the  matter  unsettled,  or  only  half  settled,  there 
never  could  liave  been  a hearty  understanding  between 
him  and  Corinth.  There  woidd  have  been  for  ever  a 
sense  of  a something  reserved  ; there  would  liave  been 
a wound,  which  never  had  been  jirobed.  Whenever, 
then,  tluTci  is  a inisunderstandino;  between  man  and 
man,  or  harsh  words  reported  to  one  as  said  by  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


369 


other,  the  true  remedy  is  a direct  and  open  request  for 
explanation.  In  the  world’s  idea,  this  means  satisfac- 
tion in  the  sense  of  revenge ; in  the  Christian  sense  it 
means  examination  in  order  to  do  mutual  justice.  The 
rule  for  this  is  laid  down  by  Christ : Moreover,  if  thy 
brother  shall  trespass  against  thee,  go  and  tell  him  his 
fault  between  thee  and  him  alone  : if  he  shall  hear  thee, 
thou  hast  gained  thy  brother.”  It  is  the  neglect  of 
this  rule  of  frankness  that  pepetuates  misunderstandings. 
Suspicions  lie  hid,  and  burn,  and  wrankle  ; and  senten- 
ces, and  half  sentences,  are  reported  by  persons  who  do 
not  mean  to  make  mischief,  but  who  effectually  do  so.  % 
Words  are  distorted  and  misconstrued,  and  two  upright 
men,  between  whom  one  frank,  open  conversation  would 
set  all  right,  are  separated  for  ever. 

Secondly,  I infer  the  blessing,  not  merely  the  duty, 
of  entire  truthfulness.  The  affectionate  relations  be- 
tween St.  Paul  and  the  Corinthians,  though  interrupt- 
ed, were  restored  again,  because  he  had  been  true. 
Candor  and  straightforwardness  were  the  bond  of  attach- 
ment. Henceforward,  however  their  friendship  might 
be  tried,  however  his  love  might  be  maligned,  they 
would  feel  sure  of  him,  and  he  would  never  fear  an  ex- 
planation. A firm  foundation  had  been  laid  for  an 
abiding  relation  between  the  Apostle  and  his  Church. 
Learn,  then,  never  to  smooth  away,  through  fear  of 
results,  the  difficulties  of  love  or  friendship  by  conceal- 
ment, or  a subtle  suppression  of  facts  or  feelings.  Re- 
prove, explain,  submit  with  all  gentleness,  and  yet  with 
all  truth  and  openness.  The  deadliest  poison  you  can 
instil  into  the  wine  of  life  is  a fearful  reserve,  which 
creates  suspicion,  or  a lie,  which  will  canker  and  kill 
your  own  love,  and  through  that  your  friend’s.  The 
great  blessings  of  this  life  are  Friendship  and  Affection. 
Be  sure  that  the  only  irreparable  blight  of  both  is  false- 
ness. 


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LECTURE  L. 

June  30,  1850. 

2 Corinthians,  vii.  9,  10.  — Now  I rejoice,  not  that  ye  were  made 
sorry,  but  that  ye  sorrowed  to  repentance  : for  ye  were  made  sorry 
after  a godly  manner,  that  ye  might  receive  damage  by  us  in  noth- 
ing.— Eor  godly  sorrow  worketh  repentance  to  salvation  not  to  be 
repented  of : but  the  'sorrow  of  the  world  worketh  death.  ’ ’ 

That  which  is  chiefly  insisted  on  in  these  verses,  is 
the  distinction  between  sorrow  and  repentance.  To 
grieve  over  sin  is  one  thing,  to  repent  of  it  is  another. 

The  Apostle  rejoiced,  not  that  the  Corinthians  sor- 
rowed, but  that  they  sorrowed  unto  repentance.  Sorrow 
has  two  results ; it  may  end  in  spiritual  life,  or  in 
spiritual  death ; and,  in  themselves,  one  of  these  is  as 
natural  as  the  other.  Sorrow  may  produce  two  kinds 
of  reformation  — a transient,  or  a permanent  one  — an 
alteration  in  habits,  which,  originating  in  emotion,  will 
last  so  long  as  that  emotion  continues,  and  then,  after  a 
few  fruitless  efforts,  be  given  up,  — a repentance  which 
will  be  repented  of;  or,  again,  a permanent  change, 
which  will  be  reversed  by  no  after  thought  — a repent- 
ance not  to  be  repented  of.  Sorrow  is,  in  itself,  there- 
fore, a thing  neither  good  nor  bad  : its  value  depends 
on  the  spirit  of  the  person  on  whom  it  falls.  Fire  will 
inflame  straw,  soften  iron,  or  harden  clay  : its  effects 
are  determined  by  the  object  with  which  it  comes  in 
contact.  Warmth  develoj)s  the  energies  of  life,  or 
helj)s  the  ])rogress  of  decay.  It  is  a great  power  in  the 
liot-house,  a great  power  also  in  the  coffin  ; it  expands 
tlie  leaf,  matures  the  fruit,  adds  precocious  vigor  to 
vegetable  lile  : and  warmth,  too,  develops,  with  tenfold 
rapidity,  the  weltering  jirocess  of  dissolution.  So,  too, 
with  sorrow.  There  are  spirits  in  which  it  develops 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


371 


tlie  seminal  principle  of  life  ; there  are  others,  in  which 
it  prematurely  hastens  the  consummation  of  irreparable 
decay.  Our  subject,  therefore,  is  the  twofold  power  of 
sorrow  : — 


I.  The  fatal  power  of  the  sorrow  of  the  world. 

II.  The  life-giving  power  of  the  sorrow  that  is  after 
God. 


I.  The  simplest  way  in  which  the  sorrow  of  the  world 
works  death,  is  seen  in  the  effect  of  mere  regret  for 
worldly  loss.  There  are  certain  advantages  with  which 
we  come  into  the  world.  Youth,  health,  friends,  and 
sometimes  property.  So  long  as  these  are  continued, 
we  are  happy ; and  because  happy,  fancy  ourselves 
very  grateful  to  God.  We  bask  in  the  sunshine  of  His 
gifts,  and  this  pleasant  sensation  of  sunning  ourselves 
in  life,  we  call  religion ; that  state  in  which  we  all  are 
before  sorrow  comes,  to  test  the  temper  of  the  metal  of 
which  our  souls  are  made,  when  the  spirits  are  unbroken 
and  the  heart  buoyant,  when  a fresh  morning  is  to  a 
young  heart  what  it  is  to  the  skylark.  The  exuberant 
burst  of  joy  seems  a spontaneous  hymn  to  the  Father  of 
all  blessing,  like  the  matin  carol  of  the  bird  ; but  this 
is  not  religion  : it  is  the  instinctive  utterance  of  happy 
feeling,  having  as  little  of  moral  character  in  it,  in  the 
happy  human  being,  as  in  the  happy  bird.  Nay  more 
— the  religion,  which  is  only  sunned  into  being  by 
happiness,  is  a suspicious  thing : having  been  warmed 
by  joy,  it  will  become  cold  when  joy  is  over ; and 
then,  when  these  blessings  are  removed,  we  count  our- 
selves hardly  treated,  as  if  we  had  been  defrauded  of  a 
right ; rebellious,  hard  feelings  come ; then  it  is  you 
see  people  become  bitter,  spiteful,  discontented.  At 
every  step  in  the  solemn  path  of  life,  something  must 
be  mourned  which  will  come  back  no  more ; the  temper 
that  was  so  smooth  becomes  ru^o-ed  and  uneven ; the 
benevolence  that  expanded  upon  all,  narrows  into  an 
ever  dwindling  selfishness  — we  are  alone  ; and  then 
that  death-like  loneliness  deepens  as  life  goes  on.  The 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


372 


course  of  man  is  downwards,  and  he  moves  witli  slow 
and  ever  more  solitary  steps,  down  to  the  dark  silence 
— the  silence  of  the  grave.  This  is  the  death  of  heart ; 
the  sorrow  of  the  world  has  worked  death. 

Again,  there  is  a sorrow  of  the  woi-ld,  when  sin  is 
grieved  for  in  a worldly  spirit.  There  are  two  views 
of  sin : in  one  it  is  looked  upon  as  wrong ; in  the 
other,  as  producing  loss  ; loss,  for  example,  of  charac- 
ter. In  such  cases,  if  character  could  be  preserved 
before  the  world,  grief  would  not  come  : but  the  parox- 
ysms of  misery  fall  upon  our  proud  spirit,  when  our 
guilt  is  made  public.  The  most  distinct  instance  we 
have  of  this  is  in  the  life  of  Saul.  In  the  midst  of  his 
apparent  grief,  the  thing  still  uppermost  was,  that  he 
had  forfeited  his  kingly  character : almost  the  only 
lono-ing;  was,  that  Samuel  should  honor  him  before  his 
people.  And  hence  it  comes  to  pass,  that  often  remorse 
and  anguish  only  begin  with  exposure.  Suicide  takes 
place,  not  when  the  act  of  wrong  is  done,  but  when 
the  guilt  is  known ; and  hence,  too,  many  a one  be- 
comes hardened,  who  would  otherwise  have  remained 
tolerably  happy  ; in  consequence  of  which  we  blame 
the  exposure,  not  the  guilt ; we  say,  if  it  had  hushed 
up,  all  would  have  been  well ; that  the  servant  who 
robbed  his  master,  was  ruined  by  taking  away  his 
character  ; and  that  if  the  sin  had  been  passed  over, 
repentance  might  have  taken  place,  and  he  might  have 
remained  a respectable  member  of  society.  Do  not 
think  so.  It  is  quite  true  that  remorse  was  produced  by 
exposure,  and  that  the  remorse  was  fatal ; the  sorrow 
which  worked  death  arose  from  that  exposure,  and  so 
far  exposure  may  be  called  the  cause  : had  it  never 
taken  place,  respectability,  and  comparative  peace, 
might  have  continued  ; but  outward  respectability  is 
not  change  of  heart. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  corpse  has  been  preserved 
for  centuries  in  the  iceberg,  or  in  antiseptic  y)eat ; and 
that  when  atmos])hcric  air  was  introduced  to  the  exposed 
surlace  it  crumblcMl  into  dust.  Exposure  worked  disso- 
lution, but  it  only  innnifested  tlie  d('ath  which  was 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS.  873 

already  there  ; so  with  sorrow  : it  is  not  the  living 
heart  which  drops  to  pieces,  or  crumbles  into  dust, 
when  it  is  revealed.  Exposure  did  not  work  dea^h  in 
the  Corinthian  sinner,  but  life. 

There  is  another  form  of  grief  for  sin,  which  the 
Apostle  would  not  have  rejoiced  to  see  ; it  is  when  the 
hot  tears  come  from  pride.  No  two  tones  of  feeling, 
apparently  similar,  are  more  unlike  than  that  in  which 
Saul  exclaimed,  I have  played  the  fool  exceedingly,’’ 
and  that  in  which  the  Publican  cried  out,  God  be 
merciful  to  me  a sinner.”  The  charge  of  folly  brought 
against  oneself,  only  proves  that  we  feel  bitterly  for  hav- 
ing lost  our  own  self-respect.  It  is  a humiliation  to 
have  forfeited  the  idea  which  a man  had  formed  of  his 
own  character  — to  find  that  the  very  excellence  on 
which  he  prided  himself,  is  the  one  in  which  he  has 
failed.  If  there  were  a virtue  for  which  Saul  was  con- 
spicuous, it  was  generosity  ; yet  it  was  exactly  in  this 
point  of  generosity  in  which  he  discovered  himself  to 
have  failed,  when  he  was  overtaken  on  the  mountain, 
and  his  life  spared  by  the  very  man  whom  he  was  hunt- 
ing to  the  death,  with  feelings  of  the  meanest  jealousy. 
Yet  there  was  no  real  repentance  there  ; there  was 
none  of  that  in  which  a man  is  sick  of  state  and  pomp. 
Saul  could  still  rejoice  in  regal  splendor,  go  about  com- 
plaining of  himself  to  the  Ziphites,  as  if  he  was  the  most 
ill-treated  and  friendless  of  mankind  ; he  was  still 
jealous  of  his  reputation,  and  anxious  to  be  well  thought 
of.  Quite  different  is  the  tone  in  which  the  Publican, 
who  felt  himself  a sinner,  asked  for  mercy.  He  heard 
the  contumelious  expression  of  the  Pharisee,  this 
Pnblican,”  with  no  resentment ; he  meekly  bore  it  as  a 
matter  naturally  to  be  taken  for  granted  — ‘‘he  did  not 
so  much  as  lift  up  his  eyes  to  heaven  ; ” he  was  as  a 
worm  which  turns  in  agony,  but  not  revenge,  upon  .the 
foot  which  treads  it  into  the  dust. 

Now  this  sorrow  of  Saul’s,  too,  works  death  : no 
merit  can  restore  self-respect ; when  once  a man  has 
found  himself  out,  he  cannot  be  deceived  again.  The 
heart  is  as  a stone : a speck  of  canker  corrodes  and 
32 


374 


LECTURES  ON  TJIE  EPISTLES 


spreads  within.  What  on  this  earth  remains,  but  end- 
less sorrow,  for  him  who  has  ceased  to  respect  himself, 
and  iias  no  God  to  turn  to  ? 

II.  The  divine  power  of  sorrow. 

1.  It  works  repentance.  By  repentance  is  meant,  in 
Scripture,  cliange  of  life,  alteration  of  habits,  renewal  of 
heart.  This  is  the  aim  and  meaning  of  all  sorrow. 
The  consequences  of  sin  are  meant  to  wean  from  sin. 
Tlie  penalty  annexed  to  it  is,  in  the  first  instance,  cor- 
rective, not  penal.  Fire  burns  the  child,  to  teach  it  one 
of  the  truths  of  this  universe  — the  property  of  fire  to 
burn.  The  first  time  it  cuts  its  hand  with  a sharp 
knife,  it  has  gained  a lesson  which  it  never  will  forget. 
Now,  in  the  case  of  pain,  this  experience  is  seldom,  if 
ever,  in  vain.  There  is  little  chance  of  a child  forget- 
ting that  tire  will  burn,  and  that  sharp  steel  will  cut ; 
but  the  moral  lessons  contained  in  the  penalties  annexed 
to  wrong-doing  are  just  as  truly  intended,  though  they 
are  by  no  means  so  unerring  in  enforcing  their  applica- 
tion. The  fever  in  the  veins  and  the  headache  which 
succeed  intoxication,  are  meant  to  warn  against  excess. 
On  the  first  occasion  they  are  simply  corrective  ; in 
every  succeeding  one  they  assume  more  and  more  a 
penal  character,  in  proportion  as  the  conscience  carries 
with  them  the  sense  of  ill  desert. 

Sorrow,  then,  has  done  its  work,  when  it  deters  from 
evil ; in  other  words,  when  it  works  repentance.  In  the 
sorrow  of  the  world,  the  obliquity  of  the  heart  towards 
evil  is  not  cured  ; it  seems  as  if  nothing  cured  it ; heart- 
ache and  trials  come  in  vain  ; the  history  of  life  at  last, 
is  what.it  was  at  first.  The  man  is  found  erring,  where 
he  erred  before.  The  same  course,  begun  with  the  cer- 
tainty of  the  same  desperate  end  which  has  taken  place 
so  often  before. 

They  have  reaped  the  whirlwind,  but  they  will  again 
sow  the  wind.  Hence,  I believe,  that  life-giving  sorrow 
is  less  remorse  for  tliat  which  is  irreparable,  than  anxiety 
to  save  tliat  which  remains.  The  sorrow  that  ends  in 
death  hangs  in  funereal  weeds  over  the  sepulchres  of  tlic 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


375 


past.  Yet  the  present  does  not  become  more  wise.  Not 
one  resolution  is  made  more  firm,  nor  one  habit  more 
holy.  Grief  is  all.  Whereas  sorrow  avails  only  when 
the  past  is  converted  into  experience,  and  from  failure 
lessons  are  learned  which  never  are  to  be  forgotten. 

2.  Permanence  of  alteration  ; for,  after  all,  a steady 
reformation  is  a more  decisive  test  of  the  value  of 
mourning  than  depth  of  grief. 

The  susceptibility  of  emotion  varies  with  individuals. 
Some  men  feel  intensely,  others  suffer  less  keenly  ; but 
this  is  constitutional,  belonging  to  nervous  temperament, 
rather  than  moral  character.  This  is  the  characteristic 
of  the  divine  sorrow,  that  it  is  a repentance  not  re- 
pented of ; ” no  transient,  short-lived  resolutions,  but 
sustained  resolve. 

And  the  beautiful  law  is,  that  in  proportion  as  the 
repentance  increases  the  grief  diminishes.  ‘‘  I rejoice,” 
says  Paul,  that  I made  you  sorry,  though  it  were  hut 
for  a Grief  for  a time,  repentance  for  ever. 

And  few, things  more  signally  prove  the  wisdom  of  this 
Apostle,  than  his  Avay  of  dealing  with  this  grief  of  the 
Corinthian.  He  tried  no  artificial  means  of  intensify- 
ing it  — did  not  urge  the  duty  of  dwelling  upon  it, 
magnifying  it,  nor  even  of  gauging  and  examining  it. 
So  soon  as  grief  had  done  its  work,  the  Apostle  was 
anxious  to  dry  useless  tears  — he  even  feared  lest 
haply  such  an  one  should  be  swallowed  up  with  over- 
much sorrow.”  A true  penitent,”  says  Mr.  New- 
man, never  forgives  himself.”  O false  estimate  of 
the  gospel  of  Christ,  and  of  the  heart  of  man  ! A proud 
remorse  does  not  forgive  itself  the  forfeiture  of  its  own 
dignity ; but  it  is  the  very  beauty  of  the  penitence 
which  is  according  to  God,  that  at  last  the  sinner,  real- 
izing God’s  forgiveness,  does  learn  to  forgive  himself. 
For  what  other  purpose  did  St.  Paul  command  the 
Church  of  Corinth  to  give  ecclesiastical  absolution,  but 
in  order  to  afford  a symbol  and  assurance  of  the  Divine 
pardon,  in  which  the  guilty  man’s  grief  should  not  be 
overwhelming,  but  that  he  should  become  reconciled  to 
himself?  What  is  meant  by  the  Publican’s  going  down 


376 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


to  his  house  justified,  but  that  he  felt  at  peace  with 
himself  aud  God? 

3.  It  is  sorrow  with  God  — here  called  godly  sor- 
row : ” in  the  margin,  sorrowing  according  to  God.” 

God  sees  sin  not  in  its  consequences,  but  in  itself ; 
a thing  infinitely  evil,  even  if  the  consequences  were 
happiness  to  the  guilty  instead  of  misery.  So  sorrow 
according  to  God,  is  to  see  sin  as  God  sees  it.  The 
grief  of  Peter  was  as  bitter  as  that  of  Judas.  He  went 
out  anfl  wept  bitterly  ; how  bitterly  none  can  tell  but 
they  who  have  learned  to  look  on  sin  as  God  does. 
But  in  Peter’s  grief  there  w^as  an  element  of  hope  ; 
and  that  sprung  precisely  from  this  — that  he  saw  God 
in  it  all.  Despair  of  self  did'  not  lead  to  despair  of 
God. 

This  is  the  great,  peculiar  feature  of  this  sorrow  ; 
God  is  there,  accordingly  self  is  less  prominent.  It  is 
not  a microscopic  self-examination,  nor  a mourning  in 
which  self  is  ever  uppermost ; my  character  gone ; 
the  greatness  of  my  sin  ; the  forfeiture  of  my  salvation. 
The  thought  of  God  absorbs  all  that.  I believe  the 
feeling  of  true  penitence  would  express  itself  in  such 
words  as  these  : — There  is  a righteousness,  though  I 
have  not  attained  it.  There  is  a purity  and  a love, 
and  a beauty,  though  my  life  exhibits  little  of  it.  In 
that  I can  rejoice.  Of  that  I can  feel  the  surpassing 
loveliness.  My  doings  ? They  are  worthless,  I cannot 
endure  to  think  of  them.  I am  not  thinking  of  them. 
I have  something  else  to  think  of.  There,  there ; in 
that  Life  I see  it.  And  so  the  Christian  — gazing  not 
on  what  he  is,  but  on  what  he  desires  to  be  — dares  in 
penitence  to  say.  That  righteousness  is  mine  : dares, 
even  when  the  recollection  of  his  sin  is  most  vivid  and 
most  poignant,  to  say  with  Peter,  thinking  less  of  him- 
self than  of  God,  and  sorrowing  as  it  were  with  God 
— Lord,  Tliou  knowest  all  things.  Thou  knowest 
that  I love  Thee.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


377 


LECTURE  LI. 

1853. 

2 Corinthians,  vii.  11-16.  — “ For  behold  this  selfsame  thing,  that 
ye  sorrowed  after  a godly  sort,  what  carefulness  it  wrought  in  you, 
yea,  what  clearing  of  yourselves,  yea,  what  indignation,  yea,  what 
fear,  yea,  what  vehement  desire,  yea,  what  zeal,  yea,  what  revenge  ! 
In  all  things  ye  have  approved  yourselves  to  be  clear  in  this  matter. 

— Wherefore,  though  I wrote  unto  you,  I did  it  not  for  his  cause 
that  had  done  the  wrong,  nor  for  his  catise  that  sulfered  wrong, 
but  that  our  care  for  you  in  the  sight  of  God  might  appear  unto  you. 

— Therefore  we  were  comforted  in  your  comfort : yea,  and  exceed- 
ingly the  more  joyed  we  for  the  jo^  of  Titus,  because  his  spirit  was 
refreshed  by  you  all.  — For  if  I have  boasted  anything  to  him  of 
you,  I am  not  ashamed;  but  as  we  spake  all  things  to  you  in  truth, 
even  so  our  boasting,  which  I made  before  Titus,  is  found  a truth. 

— And  his  inward  affection  is  more  abundant  toward  you,  whilst  he 
remembereth  the  obedience  of  you  all,  how  with  fear  and  trembling 
ye  received  him.  — I rejoice  therefore  that  I have  confidence  in  you 
in  all  things.” 

To-day  we  touch  upon  the  last  of  those  notices  re- 
specting St.  Paul’s  treatment  of  the  incestuous  Corin- 
thian, which  have  so  repeatedly  interwoven  themselves 
with  the  argument  of  the  First  and  Second  Epistles. 
The  general  subject  has  successively  brought  before  us 
the  nature  of  human  punishment,  as  not  being  merely 
reformatory,  nor  exemplary,  nor  for  safety’s  sake,  but 
also  as  being  declarative  of  the  indignation  of  society, 
and  through  society,  of  the  indignation  of  God  against 
sin.  Again,  it  has  taught  us  to  consider  excommuni- 
cation and  absolution,  and  what  these  ecclesiastical 
words  express  ; and  also  to  consider  the  power  of  bind- 
ing and  loosing  lodged  in  Humanity  — an  actual  and 
awful  power,  often  used  with  fearful  injustice  and  evil 
results  : as  when  a person,  cut  off  for  ever  from  return, 
is  driven  to  despair,  swallowed  up  with  overmuch 
sorrow.”  Now  these  are  real  powers,  dispute  as  men 
may  about  the  ecclesiastical  meaning  to  be  given  to  them. 

32* 


878 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Every  one  daily,  and  often  unconsciously,  exercises 
them  : and  to  do  this  rightly  is  no  easy  task  : for  it  is 
difficult  to  punish  wisely,  and  it  is  equally  difficult  to 
forgive  wisely.  It  is  rare  even  that  we  rebuke  in  a true 
and  prudent  spirit.  Hence,  the  whole  history  of  8t. 
Paul’s  dealing  with  this  offender  is  one  of  exceedincr 
value,  being  so  full  of  wisdom,  firmness,  justice,  and 
exquisite  tenderness.  Most  truly  it  is  an  inexhaustible 
subject ! 

The  portion  of  it  which  we  shall  consider  to-day, 
is  the  Christian  manner  of  rebuke.  We  take  two 
points  ; — 

I.  The  spirit  of  apostolical  rebuke. 

II.  The  apostolical  doctrine  of  repentance. 

I.  The  spirit  of  apostolical  rebuke. 

First : It  was  marked  by  unflinching  severity : “ I 
do  not  repent ; . . . for  I perceive  that  the  same  epistle 
hath  made  you  sorry,  though  it  were  but  for  a season. 
Now  I rejoice,  not  that  ye  were  made  sorry,  but  that 
ye  sorrowed  to  repentance : for  ye  were  made  sorry 
after  a godly  manner,  that  ye  might  receive  damage  by 
us  in  nothing.”  St.  Paul  rejoiced  then,  in  the  pain  he 
had  inflicted  : his  censure  had  not  been  weak  : severely, 
truthfully  he  had  rebuked.  Let  us  inquire  the  reason 
of  this  joy.  St.  Paul  rejoiced  because  the  pain  was 
transitory,  while  the  good  was  permanent ; because  the 
sorrow  was  for  a time,  but  the  blessing  for  ever ; be- 
cause the  suffering  was  in  this  world,  but  the  salvation 
for  eternity : for  the  sinner  had  been  delivered  to 

Satan  for  the  destruction  of  the  flesh,  that  the  spirit 
may  be  saved  in  the  day  of  the  Lord  Jesus.”  The 
criminal  had  undergone  public  shame  and  public  hu- 
miliation ; his  had  been  private  grief,  and  many  search- 
ings of  heart ; and  all  this  had  not  only  taught  him  a 
lesson,  which  never  could  be  forgotten,  and  strength- 
ened him  by  terrible  discipline  against  future  weakness, 
but  also  had  set  up  for  the  Corinthians  a higher  stand- 
ard, and  vindicated  the  purity  of  Christian  life  and  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


879 


dignity  of  the  Christian  Church.  This  was  the  pain, 
and  these  were  its  results.  Seeing  these  results,  St. 
Paul  steadily  contemplated  the  necessary  suffering. 

Let  us  now  infer  from  this  a great  truth  — the  misfor- 
tune of  non-detection.  They  who  have  done  wrong 
congratulate  themselves  upon  not  being  found  out. 
Boys  sin  by  disobedience  ; men  commit  crimes  against 
society : and  their  natural  impulse  is  to  hush  all  up, 
and  if  what  they  have  done  is  undiscovered,  to  consider 
it  a happy  escape.  Now  the  worst  misfortune  that  can 
happen  is  to  sin,  and  to  escape  detection  ; shame  and 
sorrow  do  God’s  work,  as  nothing  else  can  do  it.  We 
can  readily  conceive  that,  if  this  shame  and  scandal  had 
been  hushed  up,  then  the  offender  would  have  thought 
it  a fortunate  escape,  and  sinned  again.  A sin  unde- 
tected is  the  soil  out  of  which  fresh  sin  will  grow. 
Somehow,  like  a bullet  wound,  the  extraneous  evil  must 
come  out  in  the  face  of  day,  be  found  out,  or  else  be 
acknowledged  by  confession.  I do  not  say  it  should  be 
disclosed  publicly.  It  suffices  if  a few  — or  even  one 
person  only — have  known  it,  and  then  condemned  and 
absolved  the  offender. 

Let  me  ask,  then,  who  here  is  congratulating  himself, 
is  whispering  to  his  own  heart.  My  sin  is  not  known,  I 
shall  not  be  disgraced,  nor  punished  ? Think  you,  that 
because  undetected,  you  will  escape  with  impunity  ? No 
— never  ! Your  sin  is  there  rankling  in  your  heart : 
your  wound  is  not  probed,  but  only  healed  over  falsely  ; 
and  it  will  break  out  in  the  future,  more  corrupted,  and 
more  painful  than  before. 

Secondly  : The  Apostle’s  rebuke  was  marked  by  the 
desire  of  doing  good.  It  is  a thing  common  enough  to 
be  severe.  We  are  severe  enough  on  one  another,  both 
in  our  view  of  public  punishment  and  in  our  condemna- 
tion of  one  another’s  faults.  But  the  question  is.  What 
is  at  the  bottom  of  this  zeal  ? It  is  no  rare  thing  to 
find  men  who  can  be  severe  in  rebuke  : but  the  thing 
which  is  uppermost  is  evidently  themselves  — their  own 
fidelity,  courage,  and  truthfulness.  They  tell  you  of 
your  faults,  but  you  feel  it  is  not  your  reformation,  but 


380 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


their  own  vain-glory  they  are  trying  to  secure.  Now 
St.  Paul  was  not  thinking  of  himself,  but  of  the  Corin- 
thians. This  is  manifest  from  several  verses  in  tliis 
chapter.  Take  the  ninth  verse  : ‘‘  That  ye  might  re- 
ceive damage  by  us  in  nothing;  ” or  the  eleventh : ‘‘In 
all  things  ye  have  approved  yourselves  to  be  clear  in 
this  matter ; ” or  the  sixteenth : “I  rejoice,  therefore, 
that  I have  confidence  in  you  in  all  tilings.’’  The 
Apostle  was  not  delivering  his  own  soul,  but  he  was  try- 
ing to  save  their  souls. 

Let  us,  therefore,  examine  ourselves.  We  blame, 
and  find  fault,  and  pass  judgment  upon  our  neighbor 
freely  ; we  boldly  condemn  public  men.  Why  is  this? 
Is  it  to  show  to  ourselves,  and  others,  how  good  we  are 
— how  we  cannot  abide  sin  ? or  is  it  to  do  good  ? It  is 
often  a duty  to  express  disapprobation  strongly  and  se- 
verely, to  discountenance  vice  most  earnestly ; but  then 
we  do  it  not  in  St.  Paul’s  spirit,  unless  it  is  done  for  the 
sake  of  amelioration. 

Thirdly : The  Apostle’s  rebuke  was  marked  by  a 
spirit  of  justice.  We  refer  to  the  twelfth  verse  : 
“ Wherefore,  though  I wrote  unto  you,  I did  it  not  for 
his  cause  that  had  done  the  wrong,  nor  for  his  cause 
that  suffered  wrong,  but  that  our  care  for  you  in  the 
sight  of  God  might  appear  unto  you.”  That  is,  his  in- 
terference was  not  partisanship.  There  was  in  it  no 
taking  of  a side,  no  espousing  the  cause  of  the  injured, 
nor  mere  bitterness  against  the  criminal  : but  a holy, 
godly  zeal,  full  of  indignation,  but  not  of  vindictiveness. 
In  one  word,  it  was  Justice.  Now  this  is  exactly  what 
some  of  the  best  amongst  us  find  most  difficult  — those 
especially  of  us  who  possess  quick,  sensitive,  right,  and 
generous  feelings.  We  can  be  charitable,  we  can  be 
indignant,  we  can  forgive  ; but  we  are  not  just.  Espe- 
cially is  this  the  case  with  women : the  natural  sensi- 
tiveness and  (piick  nature  of  their  feelings,  particularly 
in  their  conceptions  of  right  and  wrong,  hinder  them 
from  looking  at  things  calmly  enough  to  judge  correctly 
Again  : this  justice  is  most  difficult  when  religious  in- 
terests are  involved  : as,  for  example,  in  the  quarrel 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


381 


between  the  Roman  Catholic  and  the  Protestant,  who 
judges  fairly  ? To  be  just  is  not  easy : for  many  quali- 
ties go  to  make  up  justice.  It  is  founded  on  forbear- 
ance, self-control,  patience  to  examine  both  sides,  and 
freedom  from  pei^onal  passion. 

Fourthly:  St.  Paul’s  rebuke  was  marked  by  joyful 
sympathy  in  the  restoration  of  the  erring.  Very  beau- 
tiful is  the  union  of  the  hearts  of  Paul  and  Titus  in 
joy  over  the  recovered — joy  as  of  the  angels  in  heaven 
over  one  sinner  that  repenteth.” 

II.  The  apostolic  doctrine  of  repentance. 

St.  Paul  rejoiced  because  the  Corinthians  sorrowed  : 
but  in  doing  so,  he  carefully  distinguished  the  kind  of 
sorrow  which  he  rejoiced  to  have  caused.  In  order  to 
follow  him,  we  must  see  what  different  kinds  of  sorrow 
there  are. 

1.  The  sorrow  of  the  world,  which  is  not  desirable, 
because  it  is  of  the  world.  There  is  an  an:dety  about 
loss,  about  the  consequences  of  mis-doing,  about  a ru- 
ined reputation,  about  a narrowed  sphere  of  action. 
Now  sin  brings  all  these  things  ; but  to  sorrow  for  them 

O O'' 

is  not  to  sorrow  before  God.  To  sorrow  for  such  things 
is  only  a worldly  grief,  because  it  is  only  about  worldly 
things.  Observe,  therefore,  that  pain,  simply  as  pain, 
does  no  good  ; that  sorrow,  merely  as  sorrow,  has  in  it 
no  magical  efficacy  : shame  may  harden  into  effrontery, 
punishment  may  rouse  into  defiance.  Again,  pain  self- 
inflicted  does  no  good.  It  is  a great  error  when  men, 
perceiving  that  God’s  natural  penalties  and  hardships 
strengthen  and  purify  the  spirit,  think  to  attain  to  a sim- 
ilar good  by  forcing  such  penalties  and  hardships  upon 
themselves. 

It  is  true  that  fire,  borne  for  the  sake  of  Truth,  is 
martyrdom  ; but  the  hand  burnt  in  ascetic  severity  does 
not  give  the  crown  of  martyrdom,  nor  even  inspire  the 
martyr’s  feeling.  Fastings,  such  as  St.  Paul  bore  from 
inability  to  get  food,  give  spiritual  strength ; but  fast- 
ings endured  for  mere  exercise,  often  do  no  more  than 
produce  feverishness  of  temper.  This  holds  good,  like- 


382 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


wise,  of  bereavement.  Tlie  loss  of  those  dear  to  us  — 
relations  and  friends  — when  it  is  borne  as  coming 
from  God,  has  the  effect  of  strengthening  and  purify- 
ing the  character.  But  to  bring  sorrow  wilfully  upon 
ourselves,  can  be  of  no  avail  towards  im])rovement. 
The  difference  between  these  two  things  lies  in  this, 
that  when  God  inflicts  the  blow,  He  gives  the  strength : 
but  when  you  give  it  to  yourself,  God  does  not  prom- 
ise aid.  Be  sure  this  world  has  enough  of  the  Cross 
in  it : you  need  not  go  out  of  your  way  to  seek  it. 
Be  sure  there  will  always  be  enough  of  humiliation 
and  shame,  and  solitariness  for  each  man  to  bear  if 
he  be  living  the  Christ-life.  They  need  not  be  self- 
inflicted. 

2.  The  sorrow  of  this  world  is  not  desirable,  because 
it  works  death  ; ” and  this  it  does  in  two  ways,  literally 
and  figuratively.  And  first,  literally.  We  do  not  need 
instances  to  show  that  there  is  nothing  like  wearing 
sorrow  to*  shorten  life.  Death  from  a broken  heart  is 
not  uncommon ; and  when  this  is  not  the  case,  how 
often  have  we  seen  that  the  days  of  existence  are 
abridged,  the  hair  grows  gray,  all  the  fresh  springs  of 
being  are  dried  up,  and  all  the  vigor  and  force  of  brain 
and  life  decay ! When  the  terror  of  sorrow  came  on 
Nabal,  his  heart  became  as  a stone,  and  died  within 
him,  and  in  ten  days  all  was  over.  When  the  evil 
tidings  came  from  the  host  of  Israel,  the  heart  of  the 
wife  of  Phinehas  broke  beneath  her  grief,  and  in  a few 
hours  death  followed  her  bereavement. 

Figuratively,  too,  the  sorrow  of  this  world  works 
death  : ” for  grief,  unalloyed  with  hope,  kills  the  soul, 
and  man  becomes  powerless  in  a protracted  sorrow, 
where  hope  in  God  is  not.  The  mind  will  not  work  ; 
it  feels  no  vigor ; there  is  no  desire  to  succeed,  no  im- 
pulse to  undertake,  for  the  spirit  of  enterprise  and  the 
eagerness  in  action  are  over  and  gone  for  ever.  The 
zest  of  existence  is  no  more : the  wine  of  life  is 
drawn.”  Hours,  days,  and  years  drag  on  in  feeling’s 
sickly  mood  ; and  the  only  things  which  pass  not  away 
are  melanclioly  and  uselessness,  now  become  “ the  habit 
of  the  soul.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


383 


Once  more : The  sorrow  of  this  world  “ works 
death  ” spiritually.  Grief  works  death.  It  is  a fearful 
tiling  to  see  how  some  men  are  made  worse  by  trial. 
It  is  terrible  to  watch  sorrow  as  it  sours  the  temper, 
and  works  out  into  malevolence  and  misanthropy.  Op- 
position makes  them  proud  and  defiant.  Blow  after 
blow  falls  on  them,  and  they  bear  all  in  the  hardness 
of  a sullen  silence. 

Such  a man  was  Saul,  the  first  king  of  Israel,  whose 
earlier  career  was  so  bright  and  glorious  ; to  whom  all 
that  lay  before  and  around  him,  seemed  only  to  augur 
happiness.  These  all  gradually  darkened,  and  a some- 
thing was  at  work  at  the  heart  of  his  life.  Defeat  and 
misfortune  gradually  soured  his  temper,  and  made  him 
bitter  and  cruel.  The  fits  of  moody  grief  became 
more  frequent,  and  then  came,  quickly,  sin  on  sin,  and 
woe  on  woe.  Jealousy  passed  into  disobedience,  and 
insanity  into  suicide.  The  sorrow  of  the  world  had 
‘‘  worked  death.” 

The  second  kind  of  sorrow  we  mentioned  is  godly 
sorrow,  and  we  will  consider  : first,  its  marks;  secondly, 
its  results. 

1.  Its  marks. — First:  Over  these  we  shall  run  rapidly. 
Moral  earnestness,  which  is  here,  in  the  eleventh  verse, 
called  carefulness.”  My  brethren,  the  one  difficulty 
in  life  is  to  be  in  earnest.  All  this  world,  in  the  gala  day, 
seems  but  a passing,  unreal  show.  We  dance,  light- 
hearted, along  the  ways  of  existence,  and  nothing  tells 
us  that  the  earth  is  hollow  to  our  tread.  But  soon 
some  deep  grief  comes,  and  shocks  us  into  reality  ; the 
solid  earth  rocks  beneath  our  feet : the  awfulness  of 
life  meets  us  face  to  face  in  the  desert.  Then  the  value 
of  things  is  seen ; then  it  is  that  godly  sorrow  produces 
carefulness ; then  it  is  that,  like  Jacob,  we  cry,  How 
awful  is  this  place  ! how  solemn  is  this  life  ! This  is 
none  other  but  the  house  of  God,  and  this  is  the  gate  of 
heaven ! ” Then  it  is  that,  with  moral  earnestness, 
we  set  forth  — walking  circumspectly,  weighing,  with  a 
watchful  and  sober  eye,  all  the  acts  and  thouglits  which 
make  up  life. 


384 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Next,  this  godly  sorrow  worketh  fear:”  not  an 
unworthy  terror,  but  the  opposite  of  that  light  reck- 
lessness which  lives  only  from  day  to  day.  Again,  it 
worketh  ‘^vehement  desire,”  that  is,  affection  ; for  true 
sorrow  — sorrow  to  God  — softens,  not  hardens  the 
soul.  It  opens  sympathies,  for  it  teaches  what  others 
suffer  ; it  gives  a deeper  power  of  symj)athy  and  con- 
solation, for  only  through  suffering  can  you  win  tlie 
godlike  ability  of  feeling  for  other’s  pain.  It  expands 
affection,  for  your  sorrow  makes  you  accordant  with 
the  still  sad  music  ” of  humanity.  A true  sorrow 
is  that  deep  grief  which  humanizes  the  soul ; ” often 
out  of  it  comes  that  late  remorse  of  love,  which  leads 
us  to  arise  and  go  to  our  Father,  and  say,  I have 
sinned  against  Heaven  and  in  Thy  sight.” 

Again,  clearing  of  themselves,”  that  is,  anxiety 
about  character.  Some  one  has  said,  that  to  justify 
one’s  deeds  unto  oneself  is  the  last  infirmity  of  evil ; ” 
he  means,  that  when  we  cease  to  do  that,  then  evil  is 
strong  : for  as  long  as  a man  excuses  himself,  there  is 
hope.  He  has,  at  least,  a standard  of  right  and  wrong 
still  left.  Now  there  is  a recklessness  of  grief  for  sin, 
out  of  which  a man  wakes ^when  he  begins  to  feel  hope, 
and  tries  to  wipe  off  the  past,  when,  in  St.  Paul’s 
words,  a godly  sorrow  urges  him  to  clear  himself. 

Lastly,  it  is  a sorrow  which  produces  revenge.” 
We  interpret  this  as  indignation  against  wrong  in  others 
and  in  ourselves.  Nowhere  is  this  more  remarkable 
than  in  David’s  Psalms  ; and  though  these  are  per- 
sonal, yet  still  the  feeling  which  gave  them  birth  is  a 
deep  and  true  one,  without  which  all  goodness  is  but 
feebleness. 

These,  together,  make  up  repentance  unto  salva- 
tion. 

Finally,  the  results:  1.  Not  to  be  repented  of.” 
2.  Sorrow’s  memory  is  sorrow  still.”  No  ! not  that 
sorrow.  No  man  ever  mourned  over  the  time  spent  in 
tears  for  sin.  No  man  ever  looked  back  upon  that 
healing  period  of  his  life  as  time  lost.  No  man  ever 
regretted  things  given  up  or  pleasures  sacrificed  for 


TO  THE  CORINTHIAXS. 


385 


God’s  sake.  No  man  on  his  dying  bed  ever  felt  a 
jDang  for  the  suffering  sin  had  brought  on  him,  if  it 
had  led  him  in  all  humbleness  to  Christ.  No  man 
ever  regretted  the  agony  of  conquest,  when  he  felt  the 
weight  upon  his  heart  to  be  less  through  sorrow  even 
by  a single  sin.  But  how  many  a man  on  his  death- 
bed has  felt  the  recollection  of  guilty  pleasures  as  the 
serpent’s  fang  and  venom  in  his  soul ! 


33 


386 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  LII. 

1853. 

2 CouiNTHiANS,  viii.  1 - 12.  — “ Moreover,  brethren,  we  do  you  to  wit 
of  the  gnace  of  God  bestowed  on  the  churches  of  Macedonia  ; — How 
that  in  a great  trial  of  affliction  the  abundance  of  their  joy  and  their 
deep  poverty  abounded  unto  the  riches  of  their  liberality.  — For  to 
their  power,  I bear  record,  yea,  and  beyond  their  power  they  were 
willing  of  themselves  ; — Praying  us  with  much  entreaty  that  we 
would  receive  the  gift,  and  take  upon  us  the  fellowship  of  the  minis- 
tering to  the  saints.  — And  this  they  did,  not  as  we  hoped,  but  first 
gave  their  own  selves  to  the  Lord,  and  unto  us  by  the  will  of  God.  — 
Insomuch  that  we  desired  Titus,  that  as  he  had  begun,  so  he  would 
also  finish  in  you  the  same  grace  also.  — Therefore,  as  ye  abound  in 
everything,  in  faith,  and  utterance,  and  knowledge,  and  in  all  dili- 
gence, and  in  your  love  to  us,  see  that  ye  abound  in  this  grace  also. 
— I speak  not  by  commandment,  but  by  occasion  of  the  forwardness 
of  others,  and  to  prove  the  sincerity  of  your  love.  — For  ye  know 
the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that,  though  he  was  rich,  yet 
for  your  sakes  he  became  poor,  that  ye  through  his  poverty  might 
be  rich.  — And  herein  I give  my  advice  : for  this  is  expedient  for 
you,  who  have  begun  before,  not  only  to  do,  but  also  to  be  forward 
a year  ago.  — Now  therefore  perform  the’  doing  of  it ; that  as  there 
was  a readiness  to  will,  so  there  may  be  a performance  also  out  of 
that  which  ye  have.  — For  if  there  be  first  a willing  mind,  it  is  ac- 
cepted according  to  that  a man  hath,  and  not  according  to  that  he 
hath  not.” 

In  the  last  chapter  of  the  First  E]:>istle  mention  was 
made  of  a contribution  which  the  Corinthians  were  sys- 
tematically to  store  up  for  the  poor  brethren  at  Jerusa- 
lem. To-day  we  enter  on  a fresh  treatment  of  the 
same  toj)ic,  and  on  a subject  different  from  those  we 
have  lately  been  engaged  with.  This  contribution  St. 
Raul  collected  in  his  journeys  from  the  Christian 
Chur(6ies.  In  this  chapter  he  records  the  largeness  of 
the  sum  which  had  been  given  him  by  the  Churches  of 
Macedonia,  and  urges  tlie  Church  of  Corinth  to  emu- 
lates their  example. 

Wo  eonsid(M'  two  points  : — 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


387 


I.  Nature  of  Christian  liberality. 

II.  Motives  urged  on  the  Corinthians. 

I.  Nature  of  Christian  liberality  as  exemplified  in  that 
of  the  Churches  of  Macedonia.  First,  it  was  a grace 
bestowed  from  God:  — ^‘Moreover,  brethren,  we  do 
you  to  wit  of  the  grace  of  God  bestowed  on  the  churches 
of  Macedonia”  (v.  1).  And  again:  ‘^Insomuch  that 
we  desired  Titus,  that  as  he  had  begun,  so  he  would 
also  finish  in  you  the  same  grace  also  ” (v.  6). 

Now  there  are  many  reasons  besides  this  mentioned 
by  St.  Paul,  which  make  liberality  desirable.  For 
example,  there  is  utility.  By  liberality  hospitals  are 
supported,  missions  are  established,  social  disorders  are 
partially  healed.  But  St.  Paul  does  not  take  the 
utilitarian  ground  ; though  in  its  way  it  is  a true  one. 
Again,  he  does  not  take  another  ground  advanced  by 
some  ; — that  liberality  is  merely  for  the  advantage  of 
the  persons  relieved  : For  I mean  not  that  other  men 
be  eased,  and  ye  burdened  ” (v.  13) : as  if  the  benefit 
of  the  poor  were  the  main  end  ; as  if  God  cared  for  the 
poor,  and  not  for  the  rich  ; as  if  to  get  from  those  who 
have,  and  bestow  on  those  who  have  not,  were  the  ob- 
ject of  inciting  to  liberality.  St.  Paul  distinctly  denies 
this.  He  takes  the  higher  ground  : it  is  a grace  of 
God.  He  contemplates  the  benefit  to  the  soul  of  the 
giver.  Charity  is  useful,  but  also  lovely : not  a mere 
engine  in  our  nature  to  work  for  social  purposes,  but 
that  which  is  likest  God  in  the  soul. 

Secondly  : Christian  liberality  was  the  work  of  a will- 
ing mind:  For  if  there  be  first  a willing  mind,  it  is 
accepted  according  to  that  a man  hath,  and  not  accord- 
ing to  that  he  hath  not”  (v.  12).  Plainly,  it  is  not 
the  value  of  the  contribution,  but  the  love  of  the  con- 
tributor, which  makes  it  precious.  The  offering  is  sanc- 
tified, or  made  unholy  in  God’s  sight,  by  the  spirit  in 
which  it  is  given.  The  most  striking  passage  in  which 
this  truth  is  illustrated  is  that  of  the  widow’s  mite. 
Tried  by  the  gauge  of  the  treasurer  of  a charity,  it  was 
next  to  nothing.  Tried  by  the  test  of  Charity,  it  was 


388 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


more  than  that  of  all.  Her  coins,  worthless  in  the  eyes 
of  the  rich  Pliarisee,  were  in  the  eyes  of  Christ  trans- 
formed by  her  love  into  the  gold  of  the  Eternal  City. 

Yet  St.  Paul  does  not  say  that  a willing  mind  is  all. 
He  makes  a wise  addition  : Now  therefore  perform 
the  doing  of  it.”  Because,  true  though  it  is  that  will- 
ingness is  accepted  where  the  means  are  not,  yet  where 
the  means  are^  willingness  is  only  tested  by  perform- 
ance. Good  feelings,  good  sentiments,  charitable  inten- 
tions, are  only  condensed  in  sacrifice.  Test  yourself  by 
action  : test  your  feelings  and  your  fine  liberal  words  by 
self-denial.  Do  not  let  life  evaporate  in  slothful  sym- 
pathies. You  wish  you  were  rich  : and  fancy  that  then 
you  would  make  the  poor  happy,  and  spend  your  life  in 
blessino;?  Now  — now  is  the  time — now  or  never. 
Habituate  your  heart  to  acts  of  giving.  Habituate  your 
spirit  to  the  thought,  that  in  all  lives  something  is  owed 
to  God.  Neglect  this  now,  and  you  will  not  practise  it 
more  when  rich.  Charity  is  a habit  of  the  soul,  there- 
fore now  is  the  time.  Let  it  be  said,  He  hath  done 
what  he  could ^ 

Thirdly:  The  outpouring  of  poverty  (v.  2).  As  it 
was  in  the  time  of  the  Apostle,  so  it  is  now.  It  was 
the  poor  widow  who  gave  all.  It  was  out  of  their  deep 
poverty  that  the  Macedonians  were  rich  in  liberality. 
There  is  something  awful  in  those  expressions  of  Scrip- 
ture which  speak  of  riches  as  shutting  up  the  soul.  “ It 
is  easier,”  said  Christ,  for  a camel  to  go ‘through,  the 
eye  of  a needle,  than  for  a rich  man  to  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  God:”  Not  many  mighty,  not  many 
noble  are  called,”  writes  St.  Paul.  Again : Woe 
unto  you  that  are  rich  ! for  ye  have  received  your  con- 
solation.” Now  we  do  not  expect  these  sayings  to  be 
believed : they  are  explained  away.  No  man  fears 
riclies.  Yet  it  is  a fact,  generally,  that  a man’s  liberal- 
ity floes  not  increase  in  j)roportion  as  he  grows  rich.  It 
is  exactly  the  reverse.  He  extends  his.  desires  ; luxu- 
ries become  necessaries.^  Ho  must  move  in  another 
S])here,  keep  more  servants,  and  take  a larger  housevi 
And  so,  in  the  end,  his  liberality  becomes  proportion- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


889 


ately  less  than  what  it  was  before.  Let  any  one  who 
has  experienced  an  advance  of  wealth  compare  his  ex- 
penditure when  he  had  but  a few  annual  pounds,  with 
his  expenditure  after  he  became  rich.  Let  any  one 
compare  the  sums  given  in  charity  by  those  of  moderate 
income  with  the  sums  given  by  the  wealthy.  Here,  in 
England,  the  rich  give  their  hundreds,  the  poor  their 
thousands.  There  are*many  things  to  account  for  this 
fact.  The  rich  have  large  liabilities  to  meet : or  they 
possess  large  establishments  which  must  be  kept  up. 
There  is  a growing  sense  of  money’s  value,  when  each 
sovereign  stands  for  so  much  time.  Still,  whatever 
may  be  the  mitigating  circumstances,  the  fact  remains. 
And  the  inferences  from  it  are  two : — 

1.  Let  this  circumstance  be  a set-off  against  poverty 
and  privations.  God  has  made  charity  easier  to  you 
who  are  not  the  rich  of  this  world,  and  saved  you  from 
many  a sore  temptation.  It  is  written,  Better  is  a 
dinner  of  herbs  where  love  is,  than  a stalled  ox  and 
hatred  therewith.” 

2.  Let  this  fact  weaken  the  thirst  for  riches,  which  is 

the  great  longing  of  our  day : The  wealthiest  man 

among  us  is  the  best.”  Doubtless  riches  are  a good  ; but 
remember  that  the  Bible,  if  it  be  true,  is  full  of  warn- 
ings respecting  them.  Think  alone  of  this  one  : They 
that  will  be  rich  fall  into  temptation  and  a snare.” 

Fourthly  : It  is  a peculiarity  in  Christian  liberality 
that  it  is  exhibited  to  strangers.  In  the  case  before  us, 
the  charity  was  displayed  in  behalf  of  the  poor  at 
Jerusalem,  and  was  a contribution  sent  from  Gentiles 
to  Jews.  Love  of  Christ,  then,  had  bridged  over  that 
gulf  of  ancient  hatred.  The  Spirit  of  Christ  had  been 
given  in  these  words  : If  ye  love  them  which  love 
you,  wliat  reward  have  ye  ? do  not  even  the  publicans 
the  same  ? And  if  ye  salute  your  brethren  only,  what 
do  ye  more  than  others  ? ” ‘‘  But  I say  unto  you. 

Love  your  enemies,  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you.” 
The  power  of  these  words,  ratified  by  a Life,  had 
spread  throngh  the  an'cient  Church,  and  Gentile,  and 
Jew  were  united  to  each  other  by  a common  love. 


390 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Now,  I say,  there  is  nothing  hut  Cliristianity  which  can 
do  this.  Without  Christ,  there  must  be  dissension  be- 
tween race  and  race,  family  and  family,  man  and  man. 
Think  of  the  old  rancors  of  the  heathen  world.  This 
spirit  of  dissension  was  the  great  question  of  ancient 
ages,  and  was  the  origin  of  their  wars.  In  times  be- 
fore the  Dorian  was  matched  against  the  Ionian,  the 
Samaritan  hated  the  Jew ; and*  the  Jew  shrank  from 
the  pollution  of  the  Samaritan,  and  looked  on  the  Gen- 
tile-as  an  outcast ; until  He  came,  who  is  our  Peace, 
who  hath  made  both  one,  and  hath  broken  down  the 
middle  wall  of  partition.” 

But,  it  is  said,  philanthropy  does  this.  Philanthropy  ! 
It  is  a dream  without  Christ.  Why  should  I love  the 
negro  or  the  foreigner  ? You  can  give  no  reason  ex- 
cept an  opinion.  Why  should  I not  be  as  exclusive  as 
I please,  and  shrink  from  other  nations,  and  keep  up 
national  hatreds,  when  even  the  analogy  of  nature  is 
on  my  side,  and  I see  the  other  inhabitants  of  this 
planet  waging  war  on  one  another,  bird  with  bird, 
beast  with  beast?  Well,  in  reply  to  that,  Christianity 
reveals  in  Christ  the  truth  which  lies  below  our  human 
nature — -God.  We  are  one  in  Christ — one  Family. 
Human  blessedness  is  impossible  except  through  union 
one  with  another.  But  union  is  impossible  except  in 
God. 

This  was  the  truth  taught  by  the  shew-bread  piled 
upon  the  altar.  Each  loaf  was  offered  for,  and  repre- 
sented a tribe  : and  the  whole  twelve,  with  different 
characteristics  arid  various  interests,  were  yet  one  in 
God,  and  therefore  one  with  each  other.  And  this 
truth  was  realized  in  Christ,  in  whom  all  the  tribes  of 
the  world  and  all  the  opposing  elements  of  society  meet 
and  mingle.  We  have  an  altar  whereof  they  have  no 
right  to  eat  that  serve  the  tabernacle. 

These  are  the  main  characteristics  of  Christian  liber- 
ality. But  observe,  this  liberality  is  not  necessarily 
the  giving  of  money.  Almsgiving  is  recommended  in 
the  Bible,  but  it  is  not  necessarily  the  true  form  now 
in  our  altered  state  of  thiims.  For  indiscriminate 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


391 


almsgiving  is  injurious  both  to  the  giver  and  the  re- 
ceiver : to  the  giver,  as  it  encourages  indolence  ; to 
the  receiver,  as  it  prevents  independence  and  exertion. 
Again,  remember  there  may  be  true  liberality,  when  a 
man  gives  nothing  to  religious  societies.  Suppose  he 
spends  his  money  in  employing  labor  wisely,  suppose 
he  gives  good  wages,  suppose  he  invests  capital  in  en- 
terprises which  call  outlhe  highest  qualities  — then  such 
a man,  although  directly  giving  nothing,  indirectly  gives 
much,  and  is  charitable  in  the  true  sense  of  the  word. 

II.  Motives  to  Christian  liberality. 

1.  Christian  completeness  (v.  7).  The  Corinthians 

were  orthodox ; they  had  strong  convictions  of  the 
liberty  of  Christianity.  Gifts  of  eloquence  abounded 
in  the  Church  ; they  were  deeply  grounded  in  truth  : 
they  were  active  in  thought  and  active  in  work  — nay 
more,  they  had  much  zeal  and  love  for  their  teachers  ; 
and  yet,  without  this  liberality,  their  Christianity  would 
have  been  most  incomplete  : As  ye  abound  in  every- 
thing, in  faith,  and  utterance,  and  knowledge,  and  in 
all  diligence,  and  in  your  love  to  us,  see  that  ye  abound 
in  this  grace  also.”  The  same  idea  is  fully  worked  out 
in  the  thirteenth  chapter  of  the  First  Epistle.  More- 
over, this  verse  exhibits  the  true  conception  of  Chris- 
tianity : It  is  not  a set  of  views,  nor  is  it  faith,  nor  de- 
votional feeling  : but  it  is  comjjleteness  of  Humanity. 
We  are  to  grow  up  in  the  knowledge  of  Christ,  till  we 
all  come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith  and  of  the  knowledge 
of  the  Son  of  God  to  perfect  men  — to  the  measure 
of  the  stature  and  fulness  of  Christ.  Again,  St.  Paul 
says : This  also  we  wish,  even  your  perfection : ” 

and  to  the  Thessalonians : I pray  God  your  whole 
spirit,  and  soul,  and  body  be  preserved  blameless.” 
And  Christ  places  this  high  standard  before  His  disci- 
ples as  their  aim:  “Be  ye  therefore  perfect,  even  as 
your  Father  which  is  in  Heaven  is  perfect.”  For  it  is 
the  work  of  Christ  to  take  the  whole  man,  and  present 
him  a living  sacrifice  to  God. 

2.  Another  motive  of  Christian  liberality  is  emula- 


392 


LECTURES  ON  TIO:  EPISTLES 


tion.  Compare  versos  one  to  eight  of  this  chapter,  and 
also  the  eleventli  cliay)ter  of  Homans^  at  the  eleventli 
verse.  Observe  here  the  truth  of  Scripture.  Ordinary, 
feeble  philanthropy  would  say,  “ Emulation  is  danger- 
ous.” Cowper  calls  it  parent  of  envy,  hatred,  jealousy, 
and  pride.  Yet  there  is  such  a feeling  as  emvdation  in 
our  nature,  nnd  the  Bible  says  it  has  a meaning ; nay, 
is  not  wrong,  but  in  its  place  a true  and  right  affection 
of  Humanity.  So  St.  Paul  here  took  advantage  of  this 
feeling.  The  Macedonian  Church  had  raised  the 
standard  of  Christian  liberality  high,  and  the  Corin- 
thians are  stimulated  not  to  fall  below  that  standard. 

But  had  the  Apostle  said,  Be  not  beaten  by  those 
Macedonians  ” — had  he  called  natural  prejudices  into 
play  — a Corinthian  to  yield  to  a Macedonian  ! then  all 
the  evil  passions  of  our  nature  had  been  stimulated.  In 
giving  largely  the  Corinthians  would  have  learned  to 
hate  the  Macedonians  ; and  to  give  more  for  the  sake 
of  triumphing  over  them,  Instead  of  this,  St.  Paul 
exhibits  the  Macedonians  as  worthy  of  admiration,  and 
exhorts  the  Corinthians  to  enter  the  lists  in  honorable 
rivalry.  Herein,  I believe,  lies  the  difference  : Emula- 
tion, meaning  a desire  to  outstrip  individuals,  is  a per- 
verted feeling  ; emulation,  meaning  a desire  to  reach 
and  pass  a standard,  is  a true  feeling  — the  parent  of  all 
progress  and  of  all  excellence.  Hence  set  before  you 
high  models.  Try  to  live  with  the  most  generous,  and 
to  observe  their  deeds.  Unquestionably,  good  men  set 
the  standard  of  life. 

3.  The  last  motive  alleged  is  the  example  of  Christ 
(ver.  9).  Here  we  must  observe,  first,  that  Christ  is 
the  reference  for  everything.  To  Christ’s  Life  and 
Christ’s  Spirit  St.  Paul  refers  all  questions,  both  practi- 
cal and  speculative,  for  a solution.  For  all  our  mysteri- 
ous human  life  refers  itself  back  to  Him.  Christ’s  Life 
is  the  measure  of  the  world.  Observe,  again,  it  is  in 
sy)irit,  and  not  in  letter,  that  Christ  is  our  examyde. 
Tlie  Corinthians  were  asked  to  give  money  for  a special 
object ; and  (dirist  is  brought  forward  as  their  examyde. 
But  Clirist  did  not  give  money.  He  gave  Himself.  His 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


393 


riches  were  perfect  happiness  ; His  poverty  was  humili- 
ation ; and  He  humbled  Himself,  that  we,  through  His 
poverty,  might  be  made  rich.  He  gave  Himself  to 
bless  the  world.  This,  then,  is  the  example  ; and  it  is 
the  spirit  of  that  example  which  the  Corinthians  a^^e 
urged  to  imitate. 

It  was  giving^  it  was  Love  that  was  the  essence  of 
the  Sacrifice.  The  form  was  a secondary  thing.  It 
was  Life  in  His  case,  it  was  money  in  theirs  ; the  one 
thing  needful  was  a love  like  His,  which  was  the  desire 
to  give,  and  to  bless. 


394 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  L 1 1 1 . 


1858. 

2 Corinthians,  viii.  13-15.  — “For  I mean  not  that  other  men  be 
eased,  and  ye  burdened  ; — But  by  an  equality,  that  now  at  this 
time  your  abundance  may  be  a supply  for  their  want,  that  their 
abundance  also  may  be  a supply  for  your  want:  that  there  may  be 
equality:  — As  it  is  written.  He  that  had  gathered  much  had 
nothing  over;  and  he  that  had  gathered  little  had  no  lack.” 

The  eiglitli  chapter  of  the  Second  Epistle  to  the 
Coriiitliians,  the  latter  part  of  which  we  enter  on  to-day, 
concerns  a contribution  collected  by  St.  Paul  from  the 
Gentile  Christians  for  the  Jewish  Christians  at  Jerusa- 
lem. Part  of  this  we  have  already  expounded,  namely, 
as  regards  the  nature  of  Christian  liberality,  and  the 
motives  on  which  St.  Paul  urged  it.  But  there  still 
remain  several  points  which  we  had  not  time  to  consider 
in  the  last  lecture,  and  which  are,  nevertheless,  only  a 
continuation  of  the  same  subject. 

Christian  charity,  we  saw,  w^as  a grace  ’’  of  God, 
not  merely  useful,  but  also  beautiful.  We  found  it  a 
thing  whose  true  value  is  measured  not  by  the  amount 
given,  but  by  the  willingness  of  heart  of  the  giver. 
We  learnt  also  that  it  springs  up  in  the  soil  of  poverty, 
rather  than  in  that  of  wealth. 

We  considered,  further,  two  motives  on  which  St. 
Paul  urges  it : — 1.  Christian  completeness.  2.  Chris- 
tian emulation.  To-day  we  take  two  points  more  : 

I.  The  spirit  in  which  he  urged  Christian  liberality. 
11.  The  additional  motives  which  he  brought  to  bear. 

1.  The  Apostle  spoke  strongly;  not  in  the  way  of 
coercion,  but  of  counsel  and  persuasion.  In  the  eighth 
verse  lie  says,  “ 1 s])eak  not  by  commandment ; ’’  and 
again,  in  the  tentli,  ‘‘  And  herein  1 give  my  advice.” 
lioth  expressions,  taken  togetlier,  mean  simply:  “ 1 do 
not  order  this,  I only  advise  it.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


395 


Now  here  is  a peculiarity  which  belongs  to  the  teach- 
ing of  the  Apostles.  They  never  spoke  as  dictators, 
but  only  as  counsellors.  St.  Peter  says  : Neither  as 
being  lords  over  God’s  heritage.”  And  St.  Paul  marks 
still  more  strongly  the  difference  between  the  dictatorial 
authority  of  the  priest,  and  the  gentle  helpfulness  of 
the  minister:  ‘^Not  for  that  we  have  dominion  over 
your  faith,  but  are  helpers  of  your  joy.”  The  Church 
of  Rome  practises  a different  system.  There  are  two 
offices  in  that  Church,  director  and  confessor.  It  is  the 
duty  of  the  confessor  to  deal  with  guilt,  to  administer 
punishment  and  absolution ; and  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
director  to  deal  with  action,  to  solve  cases  of  difficulty, 
to  prescribe  duties,  and  to  arrange  the  course  of  life. 
Rome  has  reduced  this  to  a system,  and  a mighty  sys- 
tem it  is.  For  when  the  confessor  and  director  have 
done  their  work,  the  man  is  wholly,  Will  and  Con- 
science, bound  over  to  the  obedience  of  the  Church. 
This  is  the  righteousness  at  which  Rome  aims,  to  abro- 
gate the  individual  will  and  conscience,  and  substitute 
the  will  and  conscience  of  the  Church.  But,  remember, 
I select  Rome  simply  because  Rome  has  reduced  it  to  a 
system.  Do  not  think  it  is  confined  to  Rome  ; it  be- 
longs to  human  nature.  There  is  not  a minister  or 
priest  who  is  not  exposed  to  the  temptation  which  al- 
lures men  to  this  practice,  to  try  to  be  a confessor  and 
director  to  his  people,  to  guide  their  conscience,  to  rule 
their  wills,  and  to  direct  their  charities. 

But  obesrve  how  entirely  alien  this  was  from  St. 
Paul’s  spirit.  He  of  all  men,  the  Apostle  of  liberty, 
could  not  have  desired  to  bind  men  even  to  himself  in 
subjection.  He  hated  slavery  : most  of  all,  the  slavery 
of  mind  and  conscience  ; nay,  he  consoled  the  slave, 
because  he  was  free  in  heart  to  Christ  (1  Cor.  vii, 
21,  22). 

According  to  the  Apostle,  then,  a Christian  was  one 
who,  perceiving  principles,  in  the  free  spirit  of  Jesus 
Christ,  applied  these  principles  for  himself.  As  exam- 
ples of  this,  remember  the  spirit  in  which  he  excommu- 
nicated (1  Cor.  V.  12,  13)  and  absolved(2  Cor.  ii.  10): 


396 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


and  remark,  in  both  these  cases  — where  the  priestly 
power  would  have  been  put  forward,  if  anywhere  — the 
entire  absence  of  all  aim  at  personal  influence  or  au- 
thority. St.  Paul  would  not  even  command  Philemon 
to  receive  his  slave  (^Fhilemon^  8,  9,  13,  14).  And  in 
the  case  before  us  he  would  not  order  the  Corinthians 
to  give,  even  to  a charity  which  he  reckoned  an  impor- 
tant one.  He  would  never  have  been  pleased  to  have 
had  the  naming  of  all  their  charities,  and  the  marking 
out  of  all  their  acts.  He  wanted  them  to  be  men,  and 
not  dumb,  driven  cattle.  That  pliable,  docile,  slavish 
mind,  which  the  priest  loves  and  praises,  the  Apostle 
Paul  would  neither  have  praised  nor  loved. 

II.  Observe  the  spirit  in  which  St.  Paul  appeals  to 
the  example  of  Christ  (ver.  9).  He  urges  the  Corin- 
thians to  be  liberal  by  the  pattern  of  Christ.  He  places 
Him  before  them  for  imitation  : but  observe  in  what 
spirit  he  does  it : — 

1.  Remark  the  tendency  in  the  mind  of  St.  Paul  to 
refer  everything  back  to  Christ.  Even  when  you  least 
expect  it ; when  there  seems  no  similarity,  he  finds  a 
precedent  for  every  duty  in  some  sentence  or  some 
act  of  Christ.  For  example,  when  the  Apostle  deliv- 
ered his  last  charge  to  the  weeping  Church  of  Ephesus, 
he  urged  on  them  the  duty  of  supporting  the  weak 
by  loving  labor,  and  enforced  it  thus : I have  showed 
you  all  things.  How  that  so  laboring  ye  ought  to  sup- 
port the  weak,  and  to  remember  the  words  of  the 
Lord  Jesus,  how  He  said,  It  is  more  blessed  to  give 
than  to  receive.’’  So  in  the  case  before  us  he  is  urging 
on  the  Church  of  Corinth  to  contribute  money  ; and 
at  once  he  recurs  back  to  the  example  of  Christ : Ye 
know  the  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that,  though 
He  was  rich,  yet  for  our  sakes  He  became  poor,  that 
ye  through  His  poverty  might  be  rich.” 

To  a Christian  mind  Clirist  is  all  ; the  measure  of 
all  things : the  standard  and  the  reference.  All  things 
centre  in  Him.  The  life  and  death  of  Christ  got  by 
heart,  not  by  rote,  must  be  the  rule  for  every  act. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


397 


2.  Remark,  again,  that  St.  Paul  finds  the  parallel  of 
Christian  liberality,  not  in  the  literal  acts,  but  in  the 
Spirit  of  Christ.  The  liberality  asked  from  the  Corin- 
thians, was  the  giving  of  money ; the  liberality  of 
Christ,  was  the  giving  of  Himself.  Literally,  there 
was  no  resemblance  ; but  the  spirit  of  both  acts  was 
the  same : sacrifice  was  the  law  of  both.  In  the  act  of 
giving  money  out  of  penury,  the  eagle  eye  of  St.  Paul 
discerns  the  same  root  principle  — the  spirit  of  the 
Cross  — which  was  the  essence  of  the  Redeemer's 
sacrifice. 

This  is  the  true  use  of  the  Life  of  Christ ; it  is  the 
of  that  Life  to  which  we  should  attain.  It  is  not 
by  saying  Christ’s  words,  or  by  doing  Christ’s  acts,  but 
it  is  by  breathing  His  spirit,  that  we  become  like 
Him.  For  ^Hf  any  man  have  not  the  spirit  of  Christ, 
he  is  none  of  His.” 

Let  us  observe  the  feeling  with  which  St.  Paul  re- 
garded Jesus,  as  we  find  it  expressed  in  the  ninth  verse 
of  this  chapter.  We  cannot  but  remark  how  incom- 
patible it  is  with  the  Socinian  view  of  Christ’s  person. 
The  doctrine  taught  by  Socinianism  was,  that  Christ 
was  a mere  man.  The  early  followers  of  this  creed 
held  this  doctrine  on  the  authority  of  Scripture.  They 
said,  that  the  Apostles  never  taught  that  he  was  more 
than  man ; and  they  explained  away  all  the  passages 
in  which  the  Apostles  seemed  to  hint  at  the  reverse. 
But  here  is  a passage  which  defies  misconstruction : 

Though  He  wa%  rich,  yet  for  your  sakes  He  became 
poor.”  When  was  Christ  rich  ? Here  on  earth,  never : 
He  whose  cradle  was  a manger,  and  for  whom  the  rich 
provided  a grave  ! There  can  be  but  one  interpretation 
of  the  text.  Christ  was  rich  in  that  glory  which  He 
had  with  His  Father  before  the  world. 

There  can  be  no  mistake  about  what  St.  Paul 
thought.  We  hold  this  passage  to  be  decisive  as  to 
St.  Paul’s  feeling.  Nor  can  you  say  that  this  belief  in 
Christ’s  Divinity  was  a dogma  separable  from  St.  Paul’s 
Christianity;  this  belief  his  Christianity.  For  the 
difference  between  what  he  was  from  the  hour  when 
34 


398 


T.ECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


he  saw  his  Master  in  the  sky,  and  what  lie  had  pre- 
viously been,  was  exactly  measured  by  tlie  diflerence 
between  the  feeling  with  which  he  regarded  Jesus, 
when  he  considered  Him  as  an  impostor  to  be  crushed, 
and  the  feeling  in  which  he  devoted  all  the  energies  of 
his  glorious  nature  to  Him  as  his  Lord  and  his  God, 
whom  to  serve  he  felt  was  alone  blessedness. 

3.  Again,  in  St.  Paul’s  spirit  of  entreaty,  we  remark 
the  desire  of  reciprocity  (ver.  13,  14,  15).  It  might 
have  been  supposed  that  because  St.  Paul  was  a Jew, 
he  was  therefore  anxious  for  his  Jewish  brethren ; and 
that  in  urging  the  Corinthians  to  give  liberally,  even 
out  of  their  poverty,  he  forgot  the  unfairness  of  the 
request,  and  was  satisfied  so  long  as  only  the  Jews  were 
relieved  — it  mattered  not  at  whose  expense.  But,  in 
answer  to  such  a supposed  reproach,  the  Apostle  says, 
I mean  not  that  other  men  be  eased,  and  ye  burden- 
ed ” — but  I desire  an  equality^  I ask  that  the  rich 
may  equalize  his  possessions  with  the  poor.  This  is 
now  a remarkable  expression,  because  it  is  the  watch- 
word of  Socialists.  They  cry  out  for  equality  in  cir- 
cumstances ; and  the  Apostle  says,  ‘‘  Let  there  be 
equality  of  circumstances.”  It  is  worth  while  to  think 
of  this. 

The  principle  laid  down  is,  that  the  abundance  of 
the  rich  is  intended  for  the  supply  of  the  poor ; and  the 
illustration  of  the  principle  is  drawn  from  a miracle  in 
the  wilderness  : As  it  is  written.  He  that  had  gathered 
much  had  nothing  over : and  he  that  had  gathered 
little  had  no  lack.”  Here,  then,  in  the  wilderness,  by 
a miraculous  arrangement,  if  any  one  through  greedi- 
ness gathered  more  manna  than  enough,  it  bred  worms, 
and  became  offensive ; and  if  through  weakness,  or 
deej)  sorrow,  or  pain,  any  were  prevented  from  collect- 
ing enough,  still  what  they  had  collected  was  found  to 
be-  sidHcient. 

In  this  miracle,  St.  Paul  perceives  a great  universal 
])rinci|)Ie  of  human  life.  God  has  given  to  every  man 
a certain  capacity  and  a certain  power  of  enjoyment. 
Beyond  that  he  cannot  find  delight.  Whatsoever  he 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


399 


heaps  or  hoards  beyond  that,  is  not  enjoyment,  but  dis- 
quiet. For  example  : If  a man  monopolizes  to  himself 
rest  which  should  be  shared  by  others,  the  result  is 
unrest  — the  weariness  of  one  on  whom  time  hangs 
heavily.  Again,  if  a man  piles  up  wealth,  all  beyond 
a certain  point  becomes  disquiet.  Thus  thought  St. 
James  : “ Your  gold  and  silver  is  cankered.’’  You 
cannot  escape  the  stringency  of  that  law ; he  that 
gathereth  much,  hath  nothing  over.  How  strangely 
true  is  that  old  miracle ! How  well  life  teaches  us  that 
whatever  is  beyond  enough  breeds  worms,  and  becomes 
offensive ! 

We  can  now  understand  why  the  Apostle  desired 
equality,  and  what  that  equality  was  which  he  desired. 
Equality  with  him  meant  reciprocation  — the  feeling 
of  a true  and  lovino;  brotherhood  ; which  makes  each 
man  feel,  My  superabundance  is  not  mine ; it  is 
another’s  : not  to  be  taken  by  force,  or  wrung  from 
me  by  law,  but  to  be  given  freely  by  the  law  of  love. 

Observe,  then,  how  Christianity  would  soon  solve  all 
questions.  Take  as  instances  : What  are  the  rights  of 
the*  poor  ? What  are  the  duties  of  the  rich  ? After 
how  much  does  possession  become  superabundance  ? 
When  has  a man  gathered  too  much  ? You  cannot 
answer  these  questions  by  any  science.  Socialism  can- 
not do  it.  Revolutions  will  try  to  do  it,  but  they  will 
only  take  from  the  rich  and  give  to  the  poor ; so  that 
the  poor  become  rich,  and  the  rich  poor,  and  we  have 
inequality  back  again.  But  give  us  the  Spirit  of  Christ. 
Let  us  all  become  Christians.  Let  us  love  as  Christ 
loved.  Give  us  the  spirit  of  sacrifice  which  the  early 
Church  had,  when  no  man  said  that  ought  of  the  things 
he  possessed  was  his  own  ; then  each  man’s  own  heart 
will  decide  what  is  meant  by  gathering  too  much,  and 
what  is  meant  by  Christian  equality. 

We  shall  answer  all  such  questions  when  we  compre- 
hend the  principle  of  this  appeal : ‘‘  Ye  know  the  grace 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that,  though  He  was  rich, 
yet  for  your  sakes  He  became  poor,  that  ye  through 
His  poverty  might  be  rich.” 


400 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  LIV. 

March,  1853. 

2 Corinthians,  viii.  16  - 24.  — “ But  thanks  be  to  God,  which  put  the 
same  earnest  care  into  the  heart  of  Titus  for  you.  — For  indeed  he 
accepted  the  exhortation ; but  being  more  forward,  of  his  own  accord 
he  went  unto  you.  — And  we  have  sent  with  him  the  brother,  whose 
praise  is  in  the  gospel  throughout  all  the  churches  ; — And  not  that 
only,  but  who  was  also  chosen  of  the  churches  to  travel  with  us  with 
this  grace,  which  is  administered  by  us  to  the  glory  of  the  same 
Lord,  and  declaration  of  your  ready  mind  : — Avoiding  this,  that  no 
man  should  blame  us  in  this  abundance  which  is  administered  by 
us  : — Providing  for  honest  things,  not  only  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord, 
but  also  in  the  sight  of  men.  — xlnd  we  have  sent  with  them  our 
brother,  whom  we  have  oftentimes  proved  diligent  in  many  things, 
but  now  much  more  diligent,  upon  the  great  confidence  which  I have 
in  you.  — Whether  any  do  inquire  of  Titus,  he  is  my  partner  and 
fellow-helper  concerning  you  : or  our  brethren  be  inquired  of,  they 
are  the  messengers  of  the  churches,  and  the  glory  of  Christ.  — 
Wherefore  show  ye  to  them,  and  before  the  churches,  the  proof  of 
your  love,  and  of  our  boasting  on  your  behalf.” 

2 Corinthians^  ix.  1 - 15.  — “ For  as  touching  the  ministering  to  the 
saints,  it  is  superfluous  for  me  to  write  to  you  : — For  I know  the 
forwardness  of  your  mind,  for  which  I boast  of  you  to  them  of  Mace- 
donia, that  Achaia  was  ready  a year  ago;  and  your  zeal  hath  pro- 
voked very  many.  — Yet  have  T sent  the  brethren,  lest  our  boasting 
of  you  should  be  in  vain  in  this  behalf;  that,  as  I said,  ye  may  be 
ready  : — Lest  haply  if  they  of  Macedonia  come  with  me,  and  find 
you  unprepared,  we  (that  we  say  not,  ye)  should  be  ashamed  in 
this  same  confident  boasting.  — Therefore  I thought  it  necessary  to 
exhort  the  brethren,  that  they  would  go  before  unto  you,  and  make 
up  beforehand  your  bounty,  whereof  ye  had  notice  before,  that  the 
same  might  be  ready,  as  a matter  of  bounty,  and  not  as  of  covetous- 
ness. — But  this  I say.  He  which  soweth  sparingly  shall  reap  also 
sparingly  ; and  he  which  soweth  bountifully  shall  reap  also  bounti- 
fully. — Every  man  according  as  he  purposeth  in  his  heart,  so  let 
him  give;  not  grudgingly,  or  of  necessity  : for  God  loveth  a cheer- 
ful giver.  — And  God  is  able  to  make  all  grace  abound  toward  you ; 
that  ye,  always  liaving  all  sufficiency  in  all  things,  may  abound  to 
every  good  work  : — (As  it  is  written.  He  hath  dispersed  abroad; 
he  hath  given  to  the  poor  : his  righteousness  remainetli  for  ever.  — 
Now  lie  that  ministereth  seed  to  the  sower  both  minister  bread  for 
your  food,  and  multiply  your  seed  sown,  «and  increase  the  fruits  of 
your  righteousness;)  — Being  enriched  in  everything  to  all  bounti- 
fulncss,  which  causelh  tlirough  us  tlianksgiving  to  (Jod. — For  the 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


401 


administration  of  this  service  not  only  supplieth  the  want  of  the 
saints,  but  is  abundant  also  by  many  thanksgivings  unto  God  ; — 
Whiles  by  the  experiment  of  this  ministration  they  glorify  God  for 
your  professed  subjection  unto  the  gospel  of  Christ,  and  for  your 
liberal  distribution  unto  them,  and  unto  all  men  ; — And  by  their 
prayer  for  you,  which  long  after  you  for  the  exceeding  grace  of  God 
in  you.  — Thanks  be  unto  God  for  his  unspeakable  gift.  ’ ’ 

The  ninth  chapter  continues  the  subject  of  the  collec- 
tion for  the  poor  Christians  in  Jerusalem,  and  with  it 
we  shall  expound  the  close  of  the  eighth  chapter,  which 
we  left  unfinished  in  our  last  lecture. 

W e take  three  points  for  consideration  : — 

I.  The  mode  of  collecting  the  contribution. 

II.  The  measure  of  the  amount. 

III.  The  measure  of  the  reward. 

I.  Mode  of  collection.  St.  Paul  intrusted  this  task 
to  three  messengers  : — to  Titus,  who  was  himself  eager 
to  go  ; to  a Christian  brother  whom  the  churches  had 
selected  as  their  almoner  ; and  to  another,  whose  zeal 
had  been  tested  frequently  by  St.  Paul  himself. 

P^he  reasons  for  sending  these  messengers  are  given 
in  an  apologetic  explanation.  The  first  was,  to  give 
the  Corinthians  time,  in  order  that  the  appeal  might  not 
come  at  an  inconvenient  moment : ^*1  have  sent  the 
brethren,”  writes  St.  Paul,  lest  our  boasting  of  you 
should  be  in  vain  on  this  behalf ; that,  as  I said,  ye  may 
be  ready.”  Observe  the  tender  wisdom  of  this  pro- 
ceeding. Every  one  knows  how  different  is  the  feeling 
with  which  we  give  when  charity  is  beforehand,  from 
that  with  which  we  give  when  charitable  collections 
come  side  by  side  with  debts  and  taxes.  The  charity 
which  finds  us  unprepared,  is  a call  as  hateful  as  that  of 
any  creditor  whom  it  is  hard  to  pay.  St.  Paul  knew 
this  well  — he  knew  that  if  the  Corinthians  were  taken 
unawares,  their  feelings  would  be  exasperated  towards 
hiiu  with  shame,  and  also  towards  the  saints  at  Jerusa- 
lem, to  whom  they  were  constrained  to  give.  There- 
fore, he  gave  timely  notice. 

34^ 


402 


LIX'TUHES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Again,  lie  Lad  sent  to  tell  them  of  the  coming  of 
these  messengers,  in  order  to  preserve  their  reputation 
for  charity.  For,  if  the  Corinthians  were  not  ready, 
their  inability  to  pay  would  be  exhibited  before  the 
Macedonian  church,  and  before  the  messengers  ; and 
from  this  St.  Paul  wished  to  save  them. 

Observe  here  two  points  : — First,  the  just  value 
which  the  Apostle  set  on  Christian  reputation.  For 
the  inability  of  the  Corinthians  to  meet  the  demands 
made  on  them,  would  be  like  insolvency  in  mercantile 
phrase,  and  would  damage  their  character.  We  all 
know  how  insolvency  damages  the  man^  how  he  feels 
humbled  by  it  in  his  own  sight,  and  ashamed  ” be- 
fore men.  Such  a man  dare  not  look  the  collector  or 
the  creditor  in’  the  face  ; or,  if  he  dare,  it  is  through 
effrontery  contracted  by  a habit  which  is  hardened 
against  shame  : or,  there  are  mean  subterfuges  which 
accustom  the  mind  to  the  deceit  it  once  hated  : or,  if 
there  be  none  of  these,  or  the  man  be  too  true  or 
haughty  to  bend  to  such  things,  there  are  other  sights 
and  thoughts  which  tear  a proud  heart  to  pieces.  In 
any  way  the  man  is  injured  by  insolvency. 

Secondly : Observe  the  delicacy  of  the  mode  in 
which  the  hint  is  given  : “We  (that  we  say  not,  ye) 
may  not  be  ashamed.”  St.  Paul  makes  it  a matter  of 
personal  anxiety,  as  if  the  shame  and  fault  of  non- 
payment would  be  his.  In  this,  there  was  no  subtle 
policy  ; there  was  no  attempt  to  get  at  their  purses  by 
their  weak  side.  St.  Paul  was  above  such  means.  It 
was  natural,  instinctive,  real  delicacy  ; and  yet  it  was 
the  surest  way  of  obtaining  what  he  wished,  and  that 
which  the  deepest  knowledge  of  the  human  heart  would 
have  counselled.  For  thereby  he  appealed  not  to  their 
selfish,  but  to  their  most  unselfish  feelings  : he  appealed 
to  their  gratitude,  their  generosity,  to  everything  which 
was  noble  or  high  within  them.  The  Corinthians 
would  feel  — We  can  bear  the  shame  of  delinquency 
ourselves,  but  we  cannot  bear  that  Jhiul  should  be  dis- 
graced. dhis  is  a great  princi])le  — one  of  the  deepest 
you  can  have  for  life  and  action.  Appeal  to  the  high- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


403 


est  motives ; appeal  whether  they  be  there  or  no,  for 
you  make  them  where  you  do  not  find  them.  Arnold 
trusted  his  boys,  avowing  that  he  believed  what  they 
affirmed,  and  all  attempt  at  deceiving  him  ceased  forth- 
with. When  Christ  appealed  to  the  love  in  the  heart 
of  the  sinful  woman,  that  love  broke  forth  pure  again. 
She  loved,  and  He  trusted  that  affection,  and  the  lost 
one  was  saved.  Let  men  say  what  they  will  of  human 
nature’s  evil,  a generous,  real,  unaffected  confidence 
never  fails  to  elicit  the  Divine  spark. 

Thirdly : It  was  in  order  to  preserve  his  own  repu- 
tation that  St.  Paul  shielded  himself  from  censure  by 
consulting  appearances  ; for  if  so  large  a sum  had  been 
intrusted  to  him  alone,  an  opening  would  have  been 
left  for  the  suspicion  of  appropriating  a portion  to  him- 
self. Therefore,  in  the  twentieth  and  twenty-first 
verses,  he  especially  avoids  ” this  imputation  by  say- 
ing that  no  man  should  blame  us  in  this  abundance 
which  is  administered  by  us : providing  for  honest 
things,  not  only  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  but  also  in 
the  sight  of  men.”  In  this  is  to  be  observed  St.  Paul’s 
wisdom,  not  only  as  a man  of  the  world,  but  as  a man 
of  God.  He  knew  that  he  lived  in  a censorious  age, 
that  he  was  as  a city  set  on  a hill,  that  the  world  would 
scan  his  every  act  and  his  every  word,  and  attribute  all 
conceivable  and  even  inconceivable  evil  to  what  he  did 
in  all  honor. 

Now,  it  was  just  because  of  St.  Paul’s  honor  and  in- 
nocence that  he  was  likely  to  have  omitted  this  pru- 
dence. Just  because  the  bare  conception  of  malversation 
of  the  funds  was  impossible  to  him,  we  might  have 
expected  him  to  forget  that  the  world  would  not  think 
it  equally  impossible.  For  to  the  pure  all  things  are 
pure,  to  the  honest  and  the  innocent  suspicion  seems 
impossible.  It  was  just  because  St.  Paul  felt 'no  evil 
himself,  that  he  might  have  thoughlessly  placed  himself 
in  an  equivocal  position. 

It  is  to  such  — men  guileless  of  heart,  innocent  of 
even  the  thought  of  dishonesty,  children  in  the  way  of 
the  world  — that  Christ  says,  “ Be  ye  wise  as  serpents.” 


404 


LECTUllES  ON  THE  EPISTl.ES 


Consider  how  defenceless  St.  Paid  would  have  been 
had  the  accusation  been  made ! Who  was  to  prove 
that  the  charge  of  peculation  was  false  ? The  defence 
would  rest  on  St.  Paul  alone.  Moreover,  though  he 
were  to  be  acquitted  as  free  from  guilt,  a charge  re- 
futed is  not  as  if  a charge  had  never  been  made.  The 
man  once  accused  goes  forth  into  society  never  the 
same  as  before ; he  keeps  his  position,  he  practises  his 
profession,  his  friends  know  him  to  be  true  and  honest ; 
but,  for  years  after,  the  oblivious  world,  remembering 
only  the  accusation,  and  forgetting  the  fulness  of  the 
refutation,  asks,  But  were  there  not  some  suspicious 
circumstances  ? ” 

It  is  difficult  to  be  for  ever  cautious,  to  be  always 
thinking  about  appearances  : it  may  be  carried  too  far 
— to  a servility  for  the  opinions  of  men  : but  in  all  cases 
like  this  of  St.  Paul,  a wdse  prudence  is  necessary. 
Experience  teaches  this  by  bitter  lessons  as  life  goes  on. 
No  innocence  will  shield,  no  honor,  nor  integrity  bright 
as  the  sun  itself,  will  keep  off  altogether  the  biting 
breath  of  calumny.  Charity  tliinketh  no  evil,  but  char- 
ity is  rare  ; and  to  the  world  the  honor  of  an  Apostle 
Paul  is  not  above  suspicion.  Therefore  it  is  that  he 
says  : Let  not  your  good  be  evil  spoken  of.”  There- 
fore it  is  that  he,  avoiding  the  possibility  of  this,  sent 
messengers  to  collect  the  money,  providing  for  things 
honest  in  the  sight  of  all  men.” 

II.  The  measure  of  the  amount.  The  Apostle  did 
not  name  a sum  to  the  Corinthians  : he  would  not  be 
lord  over  their  desires,  or  their  reluctance  ; but  he  gave 
them  a measure  according  to  which  he  exhorted  them 
to  contribute. 

First,  then,  he  counselled  them  to  be  liberal ; As  a 
matter  of  bounty  and  not  as  of  covetousness.”  Second- 
ly, he  asked  them  to  give  deliberately  : Every  man 
according  as  he  ])ui'])oseth  in  his  heart.”  Thirdly,  the 
A|)Ostle  exhorted  the  Corinthians  to  bestow  cheerfully : 
‘‘  Not  grudgingly,  or  of  necessity:  for  God  loveth  a 
clieerliil  giver.” 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


405 


It  was  one  aim  of  St.  Paul,  in  sending  beforehand  to 
the  Corinthians,  that  they  might  be  able  to  give  largely, 
not  stintingly  or  avariciously.  Here  we  may  observe 
that  the  Apostle  did  not  speak,  as  we  often  preach  — 
in  an  impassioned  manner,  in  order  to  get  a large  col- 
lection of  money,  — trying  by  rhetoric  and  popular 
arts,  by  appeals  to  feeling  and  to  personal  influence,  to 
gain  his  end.  No  : he  left  the  amount  to  themselves. 
Yet  he  plainly  told  them  that  a large  contribution  was 
what  God  asked.  Remember  that  the  solemnity  of  this 
appeal  has  no  parallel  now  ; it  was  almost  a solitary 
appeal.  But  now  — now,  when  charities  abound,  to 
speak  with  the  same  vehemence  on  every  occasion,  to 
invoke  the  name  of  God,  as  if  to  withhold  from  this 
and  that  charity  were  guilt,  is  to  misapply  St.  Paul’s 
precedent.  In  the  multitudinous  charities  for  which 
you  are  solicited,  remember  one  thing  only — give  lib- 
erally somewhere^  in  God’s  name,  and  to  God’s  cause. 
But  the  cases  must  depend  on  yourselves,  and  should 
be  conscientiously  adopted. 

The  second  measure  of  the  amount  was  that  it  should 
be  deliberate  : Every  man  according  as  he  purposeth 
in  his  heart.” 

Let  us  distinguish  this  deliberate  charity  from  giving 
through  mere  impulse.  Christian  charity  is  a calm, 
wise  thing ; nay,  sometimes,  it  will  appear  to  a super- 
ficial observer,  a very  hard  thing  — for  it  has  courage 
to  refuse.  A Christian  man  will  not  give  to  every- 
thing ; — he  will  not  give  because  it  is  the  fashion  ; he 
will  not  give  because  an  appeal  is  very  impassioned, 
or  because  it  touches  his  sensibilities.  He  gives  as  he 
‘^purposeth  in  his  heart.”  Here  I remark  again,  that 
often  the  truest  charity  is  not  giving  but  employing. 
To  give  indiscriminately  now  often  ruins  by  producing 
improvidence.  In  the  days  of  the  Apostle,  things  were 
different.  The  Jew  who  became  a Christian  lost  all  em- 
ployment. Remember,  too,  with  respect  to  charitable 
collections,  that  charity  should  be  deliberate.  Men  often 
come  determined  beforehand  to  give  according  to  the 
eloquence  of  the  appeal,  not  according  to  a calm  resolve, 


408 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTT.ES 


and  from  a sense  of  a debt  of  love  to  God  which  re- 
joices in  giving.  I do  not  say  that  a man  is  never  to 
give  more  than  he  meant,  when  touched  by  the  speaker  ; 
because,  generally,  men  mean  to  give  too  little.  But 
I say  that  it  is  an  unhealthy  state  of  things,  when  a 
congregation  leave  their  charity  dependent  on  their 
ministerial  sympathies.  Let  men  take  their  responsi- 
bilities upon  themselves.  It  is  not  a clergyman’s  busi- 
ness to  think  for  his  congregation,  but  to  help  them  to 
judge  for  themselves.  Hence,  let  Christian  men  dare 
to  refuse  as  well  as  dare  to  give.  A congregational 
collection  should  not  be  obtained  by  that  mere  force  of 
eloquence  which  excites  the  sensibilities,  and  aw^akens 
a sudden  and  shortlived  impulse  of  giving,  but  it  should 
rather  be  to  them  an  opportunity  to  be  complied  with 

as  every  man  purposeth  in  his  heart.” 

III.  The  measure  of  the  reward.  — The  measure  of 
all  spiritual  rewards  is  exactly  proportioned  to  the  acts 
done.  The  law  of  the  spiritual  harvest  is  twofold  : — 
1.  A proportion  in  reference  to  quantity.  2.  A pro- 
portion in  reference  to  kind. 

1.  In  reference  to  quantity : He  which  soweth 

sparingly,  shall  reap  also  sparingly.”  Hence  may  be 
inferred  the  principle  of  degrees  of  glory  hereafter.  In 
the  Parable  of  the  Talents,  each  multiplier  of  his  money 
received  a reward  exactly  in  proportion  to  the  amount 
he  had  gained  ; and  each,  of  course,  was  rewarded  dif- 
ferently. Again : ^ ‘ He  that  receiveth  a prophet  in  the 
name  of  a prophet,”  — that  is,  because  he  w^as  a 
prophet,  — shall  receive  a prophet’’ s reward  ; and  he 
that  receiveth  a idghteous  man  in  the  name  of  a righteous 
man,  shall  receive  a righteous  man’s  reward.”  Ihey 
that  be  wise  shall  shine  as  the  brightness  of  the  firma- 
ment ” — that  is  their  rewaird  ; and  they  tliat  turn 
many  to  righteousness,  as  the  stars  for  ever  and  ever  ” 
— a rewai’d  difierent  from  the  former.  The  I’ight  hand 
and  lei't  of  Clirist  in  His  kingdom  are  given  oidy  to 
those  w'ho  drink  of  His  cuj),  and  are  ba[)tized  with  His 
baptism.  Tims  tliere  is  a j)eculiar  and  a})propriate  re- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


407 


ward  for  every  act ; only  remember,  that  the  reward 
is  not  given  for  the  merit  of  the  act,  but  follows  on  it 
as  inevitably  in  the  spiritual  kingdom,  as  wheat  springs 
from  its  grain,  and  barley  from  its  grain,  in  the  natural 
world.  Because  this  law  of  reward  exists,  we  are  given 
encouragements  to  labor : Let  us  not  be  weary  in  well 
doing,  for  in  due  season  we  shall  reap,  if  we  faint  not.” 
Again : Therefore,  my  beloved  brethren,  be  ye  stead- 

fast, immovable,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  your  labor  is  not  in 
vain  in  the  Lord.” 

2.  In  reference  to  kind.  The  reward  of  an  act  of 
charity  is  kindred  with  the  act  itself.  But  St.  Paul  lays 
down  the  broad  law  : Whatsoever  a man  soweth,  that 
shall  he  also  reap.”  He  reaps,  therefore,  not  something 
else,  but  that  very  thing  which  he  sows.  So  in  the 
world  of  nature,  a harvest  of  wheat  comes  not  from 
sown  barley,  nor  do  oak  forests  arise  from  beech  mast, 
but  each  springs  from  its  own  kind ; the  herb  yield- 
ing seed  after  his  kind,  and  the  tree  yielding  fruit, 
whose  seed  was  in  itself,  after  his  kind.”  Thus  also  is 
it  in  the  spiritual  world.  He  that  soweth  to  the  flesh 
shall  not  reap  of  the  spirit,  nor  shall  he  who  soweth  to 
the  spirit  reap  of  the  flesh. 

Now  here  often  a strange  fallacy  arises.  Men  sow 
their  carnal  things  — give  their  money,  for  example  — 
to  God  ; and  because  they  have  apparently  sown  carnal 
things  to  God,  they  expect  to  reap  the  same.  For  in- 
stance, in  pagan  times,  fishermen  or  farmers  sacrificed 
their  respective  properties,  and  expected  a double  fish- 
ery or  harvest  in  return.  The  same  pagan  principle 
has  come  down  to  us.  Some  persons  give  to  a Jews’ 
Conversion  Society,  or  to  a Church  Missionary  Society, 
and  confidently  hope  for  a blessing  on  their  worldly 
affairs  as  a result.  They  are  liberal  to  the  poor,  lend- 
ing to  the  Lord,”  in  order  that  He  may  repay  them 
with  success  in  business,  or  an  advance  in  trade. 

The  fallacy  lies  in  this  : the  thing  sown  was  not 
money,  but  spirit.  It  only  seemed  money,  it  was  in 
reality  the  feeling  with  which  it  was  given  which  was 


408 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPLSTLP^S 


sown.  For  example,  the  poor  widow  gave  two  mites, 
but  God  took  account  of  sacrifice.  The  sinful  woman 
gave  an  alabaster  box  of  ointment,  valued  by  a miser- 
able economist  at  three  hundred  pence.  God  valued  it 
as  so  much  love.  Both  these  sowed  not  what  they 
gave,  but  spiritual  seed : one  love,  the  other  sacrifice. 
Now  God  is  not  going  to  pay  these  things  in  coin  of 
this  earth : He  will  not  recompense  Sacrifice  with  suc- 
cess in  business,  nor  Love  with  a legacy  or  a windfall. 
He  will  repay  them  with  spiritual  coin  in  hind. 

In  the  particular  instance  now  before  us,  what  are 
the  rewards  of  liberality  which  St.  Paul  promises  to 
the  Corinthians  ? They  are,  first : The  Love  of  God 
(ver.  7).  Secondly:  A spirit  abounding  to  every  good 
work  (ver.  8).  Thirdly:  Thanksgiving  on  their  behalf 
(ver.  11,  12,  13).  A noble  harvest ! but  all  spiritual. 
Comprehend  the  meaning  of  it  well.  Give,  and  you 
will  not  get  back  again.  Do  not  expect  your  money  to 
be  returned,  like  that  of  Joseph’s  brethren,  in  their 
sacks’  mouths.  When  you  give  to  God,  sacrifice,  and 
know  that  what  you  give  is  sacrificed,  and  is  not  to  be 
got  again,  even  in  this  world ; for  if  you  give,  expect- 
ing it  back  again,  there  is  no  sacrifice  : charity  is  no 
speculation  in  the  spiritual  funds,  no  wise  investment, 
to  be  repaid  with  interest,  either  in  time  or  eternity ! 

No!  the  rewards  are  these:  Do  right,  and  God’s 
recompense  to  you  will  be  the  power  of  doing  more 
right.  Give,  and  God’s  reward  to  you  will  be  the 
spirit  of  giving  more : a blessed  spirit,  for  it  is  the 
Spirit  of  God  himself,  whose  Life  is  the  blessedness  of 
giving.  Love,  and  God  will  pay  you  with  the  capacity 
of  more  love  ; for  love  is  Heaven  — love  is  God  within 
you. 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


409 


LECTURE  LV. 

March  20,  1853. 

2 Corinthians,  x.  1-18.  — “ Now  I Paul  myself  beseecR  you  by  the 
meekness  and  gentleness  of  Christ,  who  in  presence  am  base  among 
you,  but  being  absent  am  bold  toward  you:  — But  I beseech  you, 
that  I may  not  be  bold  when  I am  present  with  that  confidence, 
wherewith  I think  to  be  bold  against  vSome,  which  think  of  us  as  if 
we  walked  according  to  the  flesh.  — For  though  we  walk  in  the  flesh, 
we  do  not  war  after  the  flesh  : — (For  the  weapons  of  our  warfare 
are  not  carnal,  but  mighty  through  God  to  the  pulling  down  of  strong- 
holds;)— Casting  down  imaginations,  and  every  high  thing  that 
exalteth  itself  against  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  bringing  into  cap- 
tivity every  thought  to  the  obedience  of  Christ;  — And  having  in  a 
readiness  to  revenge  all  disobedience,  when  your  obedience  is  fulfilled. 
— Do  ye  look  on  things  after  the  outward  appearance  ? If  any  man 
trust  to  himself  that  he  is  Christ’s,  let  him  of  himself  think  this 
again,  that,  as  he  is  Christ’s,  even  so  are  we  Christ’s.  — For  though 
I should  boast  somewhat  more  of  our  authority,  which  the  Lord  hath 
given  us  for  edification,  and  not  for  your  destruction,  I should  not 
be  ashamed:  — That  I may  not  seem  as  if  I would  terrify  you  by  let- 
ters. — For  his  letters,  say  they,  are  weighty  and  powerful;  but  his 
bodily  presence  is  weak,  and  his  speech  contemptible.  — Let  such  an 
one  think  this,  that,  such  as  we  are  in  word  by  letters  when  we  are 
absent,  such  will  we  be  also  in  deed  when  we  are  present.  — For  we 
dare  not  make  ourselves  of  the  number,  or  compare  ourselves  with 
some  that  commend  themselves  : but  they  measuring  themselves  by 
themselves,  and  comparing  themselves  among  themselves,  are  not 
wise.  — But  we  will  not  boast  of  things  without  our  measure,  but 
according  to  the  measure  of  the  rule  which  God  hath  distributed  to 
us,  a measure  to  reach  even  unto  you.  — For  we  stretch  not  ourselves 
beyond  our  measure,  as  though  we  reached  not  unto  you:  for  we  are 
come  as  far  as  to  you  also  in  preaching  the  gospel  of  Christ : — Not 
boasting  of  things  without  our  measure,  that  is,  of  other  men’s  la- 
bors; but  having  hope,  when  your  faith  is  increased,  that  we  shall 
be  enlarged  by  you  according  to  our  rule  abundantly,  — To  preach 
the  Gospel  in  the  regions  beyond  you,  and  not  to  boast  in  another 
man’s  line  of  things  made  ready  to  our  hand.  — But  he  that  glori- 
eth,  let  him  glory  in  the  Lord.  — For  not  he  that  commendeth  him- 
self is  approved,  but  whom  the  Lord  commendeth.” 


The  Second  Epistle  has  till  now  been  addressed  to 
those  in  Corinth  who  felt  either  love  or  admiration  for 
St.  Paul,  certainly  to  those  who  owned  his  authority. 
35 


410 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


But  with  the  tenth  chapter  there  begins  a new  division 
of  the  Epistle.  Henceforth  we  have  St.  Paul’s  reply 
to  his  enemies  at  Corinth,  and  his  vindication  is  partly 
official  and  partly  personal.  They  denied  his  aj)ostolic 
authority  and  mission,  declared  tliat  he  had  not  been 
appointed  by  Christ,  and  endeavored  to  destroy  his  per- 
sonal influence  in  the  Church  by  sneers  at  his  bodily 
weakness,  his  inconsistency,  and  his  faithlessness  to  his 
promise  of  coming  to  Corinth,  which  they  imputed  to 
a fear  of  his  own  weakness  of  character.  Powerful 
enough  in  letter- writing,  said  they,  but  when  he  comes, 
his  presence,  his  speech,  are  weak  and  contemptible. 
To  these  charges  St.  Paul  answers  in  the  remaining 
chapter.  We  will  consider  two  subjects  : — 

I.  The  impugners  of  his  authority. 

II.  His  vindication. 

I.  The  impugners  of  his  authority.  It  is  necessary 
to  distinguish  these  into  two  classes,  the  deceivers  and 
and  the  deceived  ; else  we  could  not  understand  the 
difference  of  tone,  sometimes  meek,  and  sometimes  stern, 
which  pervades  the  Apostle’s  vindication.  For  exam- 
ple, compare  the  second  verse  of  this  chapter  with  the 
first,  and  you  must  remark  the  different  shades  of  feel- 
ing under  which  each  was  written.  This  change  of 
tone  he  himself  acknowledges  in  the  fifth  chapter  of 
this  Epistle  : For  whether  we  be  beside  ourselves,  it 
is  to  God  ; or  whether  we  be  sober,  it  is  for  your  cause.” 
His  enemies  had  been  embittered  against  him  by  the  def- 
erence paid  to  him  by  the  rest  of  the  Church.  Hence 
they  tried  to  make  him  suspected.  They  charged  him 
with  insincerity  (2  Cor.  i.  12,  13,  18,  19).-  They  said 
he  was  ever  promising  fo  Come,  and  never  meaning  it; 
and  that  he  was  only  powerful  in  writing  (2  Cor.  x.  10). 
They  accused  him  of  mercenary  motives,  of  a lack  of 
a})ostolic  gifts,  and  of  not  preaching  the  Gospel.  They 
charged  him  with  artifices.  His  Christian  prudence  and 
charity  were  regai’ded  as  means  whereby  he  allured 
and  d(‘eeiv(*(l  his  followei’s.  We  must  also  bear  in  mind 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


411 


that  it  was  a party  spirit  with  which  the  Apostle  had  to 
deal:  ‘‘Now  this  I say,  that  every  one  of  you  saith, 
I am  of  Paul ; and  1 of  Apollos  ; and  I of  Cephas ; 
and  I of  Christ.”  (1  Cor.  i.  12). 

Now,  we  are  informed  in  this  chapter,  that  of  all 
these  parties  his  chief  difficulty  lay  with  that  party 
which  called  itself  Christ’s.  This  was  not  the  school 
inclined  to  ritual,  which  followed  St.  Peter,  nor  the 
Pauline  party,  which  set  its  face  against  all  Jewish 
practices,  and  drove  liberty  into  license  ; nor  yet  that 
which  had  perhaps  a disposition  to  rationalize,  and  fol- 
lowed Apollos,  who,  having  been  brought  up  at  Alex- 
andria, had  most  probably  spent  his  youth  in  the  study 
of  literature  and  philosophy.  But  it  was  a party  who, , 
tlirowing  off  all  authority,  even  though  it  was  apostolic, 
declared  that  they  received  Christ  alone  as  their  Head, 
and  that  He  alone  should  directly  communicate  truth 
to  them. 

First,  then,  let  us  observe,  that  though  these  persons 
called  themselves  Christ’s,  they  are  nevertheless  blamed 
in  the  same  list  with  others.  And  yet  what  could  seem 
to  be  more  right  than  for  men  to  say,  “We  will  bear 
no  name  but  Christ’s  ; we  throw  ourselves  on  Christ’s 
own  words  — on  the  Bible  ; we  throw  aside  all  intellec- 
tual philosophy  : we  will  have  no  servitude  to  ritual- 
ism? ” Nevertheless,  these  persons  were  just  as  bigoted 
and  as  blameable  as  the  others.  They  were  not  wrong 
in  calling  themselves  Christ’s  ; but  they  were  wrong  in 
naming  themselves  so  distinctively.  It  is  plain  that  by 
assuming  this  name,  they  implied  that  they  had  a right  to 
it  more  than  others  had.  They  did  not  mean  to  say  only, 
“ We  are  Christ’s,”  but  also,  “ You  are  not  Christ’s.” 
God  was  not,  in  their  phraseology,  our  Father,  but 
rather  the  Father  of  owv  party  ; the  Father  o^  us  only 
who  are  the  elect.  In  their  mouths  that  Name  became 
no  longer  comprehensive,  but  exclusive.  Thus  St.  Paul 
blamed  all  who,  instead  of  rejoicing  that  they  were 
Christians,  prided  themselves  on  being  a particular  kind 
of  Christians.  The  great  doctrine  of  one  Baptism 
taught  the  feeling  of  Christian  brotherhood.  All  were 


412 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


Clirist’s : all  belonged  to  Him  : no  one  sect  was  his  ex- 
clusively, or  dared  to  claim  Him  as  their  Head  more 
than  another. 

This  is  a feeling  which  is  as  much  to  be  avoided  now 
as  it  was  in  the  time  of  the  Apostle.  We  split  ourselves 
into  sects,  each  of  which  asserts  its  own  peculiar  Chris- 
tianity. This  sectarianism  falsifies  the  very  'principle  of 
our  religion,  and  therefore  falsifies  its  forms.  It  falsifies 
the  Lord’s  Prayer.  It  substitutes  for  our  Father,  the 
Father  of  me,  of  my  church  or  party.  It  falsifies  tlie 
creed  : I believe  in  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.”  It  falsi- 
fies both  the  sacraments.  No  matter  how  large,  or  true, 
or  beautiful  the  name  by  which  we  call  ourselves,  we 
are  for  ever  tending  to  the  sectarian  spirit  when  we  as- 
sume some  appellation  which  cuts  others  off*  from  par- 
ticipation with  us  : when  we  call  ourselves,  for  example, 
Bible  Christians,  Evangelicals,  Churchmen  — as  if  no 
one  but  ourselves  deserved  the  name. 

Secondly,  let  us  observe,  that  however  Christian  this 
expression  may  sound,  We  will  take  Christ  for  our 
teacher,  and  not  His  Apostles  or  His  Church,”  the  spirit 
which  prompts  it  is  wrong.  This  Christ-party  amongst 
the  Corinthians  depreciated  the  Church,  in  order  to 
exalt  the  Lord  of  the  Church  ; but  they  did  so  wrongly, 
and  at  the  peril  of  their  religious  life.  For  God’s  order 
is  the  historical ; and  these  men  separated  themselves 
from  God’s  order  when  they  claimed  an  arbitrary  dis- 
tinction for  themselves,  and  rejected  the  teaching  of  St. 
Paul  and  the  Apostles,  to  whom  the  development  of  the 
meaning  of  Christ’s  doctrine  had  been  intrusted.  For 
the  phase  of  truth  presented  by  St.  Paul  was  just  as 
necessary  as  that  prominently  taught  by  Christ.  Not 
that  Christ  did  not  teach  all  truth,  but  that  the  hidden 
meaning  of  His  teaching  was  developed  still  further  by 
the  inspired  Apostles. 

We  cannot,  at  this  time,  cut  ourselves  off  from  the 
teaching  of*  eighteen  centuries,  and  say,  We  will  have 
none  but  Christ  to  reign  over  us  ; ” nor  can  we.  pro- 
claim, Not  the  (diui*ch,  but  the  Lord  of  the  Church.” 
We  cannot  do  without  the  dillerent  shades  and  phases 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


413 


of  knowledge  wliicli  God’s  various  instruments,  in  ac- 
cordance with  their  various  characters  and  endowments, 
have  delivered  to  us.  For  God’s  system  is  mediatorial, 
that  is,  truth  to  men  communicated  through  men. 

See,  then,  how,  as  in  Corinth,  the  very  attempt  to 
separate  from  parties  may  lead  to  a sectarian  spirit,  un- 
less we  can  learn  to  see  good  in  all,  and  Christ  in  all. 
And  should  we,  as  this  Christ-party  did,  desert  human 
instrumentality,  we  sink  into  self-will  : we  cut  ourselves 
from  the  Church  of  God,  and  fall  under  the  popery  of 
our  own  infallibility. 

What  dangers  on  every  side  ! God  shield  us  ! For 
these  present  days  are  like  those  of  which  we  are  speak- 
ing. The  same  tendencies  are  appearing  again  : some 
are  disposed  to  unduly  value  law  and  ritual,  some  as- 
pire to  a freedom  from  all  law,  some  incline  to  literary 
religion,  and  some,  like  the  Christ-party  here  spoken  of, 
to  pietism  and  subjective  Christianity.  Hence  it  is  that 
the  thoughtful  study  of  these  Epistles  to  the  Corinthians 
is  so  valuable  in  our  time,  when  nothing  will  avert  the 
dangers  which  threaten  us  but  the  principles  which  St. 
Paul  drew  from  the  teaching  of  Christ,  and  has  laid 
down  here  for  the  admonition  of  His  Church  at 
Corinth. 

H.  His  vindication.  St.  Paul  vindicated  his  au- 
thority, because  it  was  founded  on  the  power  of  meek- 
ness^ and  it  was  a spiritual  power  in  respect  of  that 
meekness.  The  weapons  of  his  warfare  were  not  car- 
nal : Though  we  walk  in  the  flesh,”  he  says,  we  do 
not  war  after  the  flesh,”  — that  is.  We  do  not  use  a 
worldly  soldier’s  weapons,  — we  contend,  not  with  force, 
but  with  meekness  of  wisdom  and  wdth  the  persuasive- 
ness of  truth.  This  was  one  of  the  root  principles  of 
St.  Paul’s  ministry  : If  he  reproved,  it  was  done  in  the 
spirit  of  meekness  (Gal.  vi.  1)  ; or  if  he  defended  his 
own  authority,  it  was  still  with  the  same  spirit  (2  Cor.  x. 
1).  Again,  when  the  time  of  his  departure  was  at 
hand,  and  he  would  leave  his  last  instructions  to  his  son 
Timothy,  he  closes  his  summary  of  the  character  of 


414 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


ministerial  work  by  showing  the  need  of  meekness  : 

The  servant  of  the  Lord  must  not  strive,  but  be 
gentle  unto  all  men,  apt  to  teach,  patient,  in  meekness 
instructing  those  that  oppose  themselves.” 

Here  again,  according  to  his  custom,  the  Apostle 
refers  to  the  example  of  Christ.  He  besought  tlie  Co- 
rinthians by  the  meekness  and  gentleness  of  Christ.” 
He  vindicated  his  authority,  because  he  had  been  meek, 
as  Christ  was  meek  : for  not  by  menace,  nor  by  force, 
did  He  conquer,  but  by  the  might  of  gentleness  and  the 
power  of  meekness : Who,  when  He  was  reviled,  re- 
viled not  again  ; when  He  suffered,  He  threatened  not.” 
On  that  foundation  St.  Paul  built ; it  was  that  example 
which  he  imitated  in  his  moments  of  trial,  when  he  was 
reproved  and  censured.  He  confessed  his  own  base- 
ness of  appearance  : ” when  others  had  low  thoughts  of 
him,  he  had  low  ones  of  himself. 

Thus  it  happened,  that  one  of  the  Apostle’s  mightiest 
weapons  ” was  the  meekness  and  lowliness  of  heart 
which  he  drew  from  the  Life  of  Christ.  So  it  ever  is. 
Humility,  after  all,  is  the  best  defence.  It  disarms  and 
conquers  by  the  majesty  of  submission.  To  be  humble 
and  loving  — that  is  true  life.  Do  not  let  insult  harden 
you,  nor  cruelty  rob  you  of  tenderness.  If  men  wound 
your  heart,  let  them  not  embitter  it ; and  then  yours 
will  be  the  victory  of  the  Cross.  You  will  conquer  as 
Christ  conquered,  and  bless  as  He  blessed.  But 
remember,  fine  words  about  gentleness,  self-sacrifice, 
meekness,  are  worth  very  little.  Talking  of  the  noble- 
ness of  humility  and  self-surrender,  is  not  believing  in 
tliem.  Would  you  believe  in  the  Cross  and  its  victory  ? 
then  live  in  its  spirit  — act  upon  it. 

Again,  St.  Paul  rested  his  authority  not  on  carnal 
weapons,  but  on  the  spiritual  power  of  truth.  Consider 
the  strongholds  which  the  Apostle  had  to  pull  down  and 
subdue.  There  were  the  sophistries  of  the  educated, 
and  the  ignorant  prejudices  of  the  multitude.  There 
were  the  old  habits  which  clung  to  the  Christianized 
heathen.  There  was  tlie  ]>ride  of  intellect  in  the  arro- 
gant Greek  j)hilos()})hers,  and  the  pride  of  the  flesh  in 


TO  THE  COIIINTHIANS. 


415 


the  Jewish  love  of  signs.  There  was  — most  difficult 
of  all  — the  pride  of  ignorance.  All  these  strongholds 
were  to  be  conquered  : every  thought  was  to  be  brought 
‘‘  into  captivity  to  the  obedience  of  Christ.’’ 

For  this  work  St.  Paul’s  sole  weapon  was  Truth. 
The  ground  on  which  he  taught  was  not  authority : 
but  by  manifestation  of  the  truth  ” he  commended 
himself  to  every  man’s  conscience.”  His  power 
rested  on  no  carnal  weapon,  on  no  craft  or  personal 
influence  ; but  it  rested  on  the  strong  foundation  of  the 
truth  he  taught.  He  felt  that  truth  must  prevail.  So 
neither  by  force  did  St.  Paul’s  authority  stand,  nor  on  his 
inspired  Apostleship,  but  simply  by  the  power  of  persua- 
sive truth.  The  truth  he  spoke  would,  at  last,  vindicate 
his  teaching  and  his  life ; and  he  calmly  trusted  himself 
to  God  and  time.  A grand,  silent  lesson  for  us  now  ! 
when  the  noises  of  a hundred  controversies  stun  the 
Church  : when  we  are  trying  to  force  our  own  tenets 
on  our  neighbors,  and  denounce  those  who  differ  from 
us,  foolishly  thinking  within  ourselves  that  the  wrath  of 
man  will  work  the  righteousness  of  God. 

Rather,  Christian  men,  let  us  teach  as  Christ  and 
His  Apostles  taught.  Foree  no  one  to  God  ; menace 
no  one  into  religion  : but  convince  all  by  the  might  of 
truth.  Should  any  of  you  have  to  bear  attacks  on 
your  character,  or  life,  or  doctrine,  defend  yourself 
with  meekness  : and  if  defence  should  but  make  mat- 
ters worse  — and  when  accusations  are  vague,  as  is 
the  case  but  too  often  — why,  then,  commit  yourself 
fully  to  truth.  Outpray  — outpreach  — outlive  the 
calumny ! 


416 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


LECTURE  LVI. 


1853. 

2 Corinthians,  xii.  1-21.  — “ It  is  not  expedient  for  me  doubtless  to 
glory.  I will  come  to  visions  and  revelations  of  the  Lord.  — I knew 
a man  in  Christ  about  fourteen  years  ago,  (whether  in  the  body,  I 
cannot  tell  ; or  whether  out  of  the  body,  I cannot  tell  : God  know- 
eth;)  such  an  one  cauglit  up  to  the  third  heaven. — And  I knew 
such  a man,  (whether  in  the  body,  or  out  of  the  body,  I cannot 
tell:  God  knoweth;)  — How  that  he  was  caught  up  into  paradise, 
and  heard  unspeakable  words,  which  it  is  not  lawful  for  a man  to 
utter.  — Of  such  an  one  will  I glory  : yet  of  myself  I will  not 
glory,  but  in  mine  infirmities. — For  though  I would  desire  to  glory, 
I shall  not  be  a fool;  for  I will  say  the  truth  : but  now  I forbear,  lest 
any  man  should  think  of  me  above  that  which  he  seeth  me  to  be, 
or  that  he  heareth  of  me.  — And  lest  I should  be  exalted  above 
measure  through  the  abundance  of  the  revelations,  there  was  given 
to  me  a thorn  in  the  flesh , a messenger  of  Satan  to  buffet  me,  lest  I 
should  be  exalted  above  measure. — For  this  thing  I besought  the 
Lord  thrice,  that  it  might  depart  from  me.  — And  he  said  unto  me , 
My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee  : for  my  strength  is  made  perfect  in 
weakness.  Most  gladly  therefore  will  I rather  glory  in  my  infirmi- 
ties , that  the  power  of  Christ  may  rest  upon  me.  — Therefore  I take 
pleasure  in  infirmities,  in  reproaches,  in  necessities,  in  persecutions, 
in  distresses  for  Christ’s  sake  : for  when  I am  weak,  then  am  I 
strong.  — I am  become  a fool  in  glorying  ; ye  have  compelled  me ; 
for  I ought  to  have  been  commended  of  you  : for  in  nothing  am  I 
behind  the  very  chiefest  apostles,  though  I be  nothing.  — Truly  the 
signs  of  an  apostle  were  wrought  among  you  in  all  patience,  in 
signs,  and  wonders , and  mighty  deeds.  — For  what  is  it  wherein  you 
were  inferior  to  other  churches,  except  it  be  that  I myself  was  not 
burdensome  to  you?  forgive  me  this  wrong.  — Behold,  the  third 
time  I am  ready  to  come  to  you  ; and  I will  not  be  burdensome  to 
you  : for  I seek  not  yours,  but  you  : for  the  children  ought  not  to 
lay  up  for  the  parents,  but  the  parents  for  the  children.  — And  I 
will  very  gladly  spend  and  be  spent  for  you  : though  the  more 
abundantly  I love  you,  the  less  I be  loved.  — But  be  it  so,  I did  not 
burden  you  : nevertheless,  being  crafty,  I caught  you  with  guile.  — 
Bid  I make  a gain  of  you  by  any  of  them  whom  I sent  unto  you?  — 
I desired  Titus,  and  with  liim  I sent  a bi-otlier.  Bid  Titus  make  a 
gain  of  you  ? walked  we  not  in  the  same  spirit  ? walked  we  not  in 
the  same  steps? — Again,  think  ye  that  we  excuse  ourselves  unto 
you?  we  speak  bct()re  God  in  Clirist  : but  we  do  all  things,  dearly 
beloved,  for  your  edifying.  — For  I fear,  lest,  when  I come,  1 shall 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


417 


not  find  you  such,  as  I would,  and  that  I shall  be  found  unto  you 
such  as  ye  would  not : lest  there  be  debates,  euvyings,  wraths, 
strifes,  backbitings,  whisperings,  swellings,  tumults  : — And  lest, 
when  I come  again,  my  God  will  humble  me  among  you,  and  that  I 
shall  bewail  many  which  have  sinned  already,  and  have  not  repented 
of  the  uncleanness  and  fornication  and  lasciviousness  which  they 
have  committed.” 

The  Apostle  Paul,  in  the  preceding  chapter,  had 
adduced  evidence  of  the  greatness  of  his  sufferings  in 
his  witness  to  the  truths  he  had  received  from  Christ. 
The  extent  of  his  labors  was  proved  by  his  sufferings, 
and  both  were,  in  a manner,  an  indirect  proof  of  his 
apostleship.  In  the  passage  we  consider  to-day — a 
passage  of  acknowledged  difficulty  — he  advances  a 
direct  proof  of  his  apostolic  mission.  Let  us,  however, 
before  proceeding,  understand  the  general  structure  of 
the  passage.  The  point  in  question  all  along  has  been 
St.  Paul’s  authority.  The  Corinthians  doubted  it,  and 
in  these  verses,  in  proof  of  it,  he  alleges  certain  spiritual 
communications  of  a preternatural  kind,  which  had 
been  made  to  him.  To  these  he  adds,  in  the  twelfth 
verse,  certain  peculiar  trials ; all  of  which  together 
made  up  his  notion  of  apostolic  experience.  A man 
divinely  gifted,  and  divinely  tried  — that  was  an  Apos- 
tle. But  it  is  remarkable,  that  he  reckons  the  trials  as 
a greater  proof  of  apostleship  than  the  marvellous  ex- 
periences (ver.  9). 

There  is  but  one  difficulty  to  clog  this  outset.  It 
would  seem  that  St.  Paul,  in  reference  to  the  revela- 
tions, is  not  speaking  of  himself,  but  of  another  man 
(ver.  1 --  6)  ; more  especially  in  the  fifth  verse  : Of 
such  an  one  will  I glory : yet  of  myself  I will  not  glory, 
but  in  mine  infirmities.”  Nevertheless,  the  fact  of  St. 
Paul’s  identity  with  the  person,  he  speaks  of  is  beyond 
a doubt.  All  difficulty  is  set  at  rest  by  the  sixth  and 
seventh  verses,  where  he  allows  that  the  man  so  favored 
is  himself. 

It  remains  only  to  ask  how  St.  Paul  came  to  speak 
of  himself  under  the  personality  of  another.  For  this 
I suggest  two  reasons  ; — 1.  Natural  diffidence.  For 
the  more  refined  and  courteous  a man  is,  the  more  he 


418 


LECTUKES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


will  avoid,  in  conversation,  a direct  mention  of  himself ; 
and,  in  like  manner,  as  civilization  advances,  the  dis- 
inclination to  write  even  of  self  in  the  first  person,  is 
shown  by  the  use  of  the  terms  the  author,”  and 
we  ; ” men  almost  unconsciously  acting  in  that  spirit 
of  delicacy,  which  forbids  too  open  an  obtrusion  of  one- 
self upon  the  public. 

That  this  delicacy  was  felt  by  St.  Paul  is  evident 
from  what  he  says  in  the  fourth  chapter  of  the  First 
Epistle,  in  the  sixth  verse,  and  from  the  whole  of  that 
chapter,  where  he  speaks  of  laborers,”  “ ministers,” 
and  of  ths  Apostles  generally,  though  all  the  while  the 
particular  person  meant  is  himself.  From  this  twelfth 
chapter  and  from  the  eleventh,  it  is  evident  all  along 
that  he  has  been  forced  to  speak  of  self  only  by  a kind 
of  compulsion.  Fact  after  fact  of  his  own  experiences 
is,  as  it  were,  wrung  out,  as  if  he  had  not  intended  to 
tell  it.  For  there  is  something  painful  to  a modest  mind 
in  the  direct  use  of  the  personal  pronoun  I,”  over  which 
an  humble  spirit,  like  the  Apostle's,  throws  a veil. 

2.  The  second  reason  I suggest  for  this  suppression 
of  the  first  person  is,  that  St.  Paul  chose  to  recognize 
this  higher  experience  as  not  entirely  yet  his  true  self. 
He  speaks  of  a divided  experience  of  two  selves,  two 
Pauls : one  Paul  in  the  third  heaven,  enjoying  the 
beatific  vision : another  yet  on  earth,  struggling,  tempt- 
ed, tried,  and  buffeted  by  Satan.  The  former  he  chose 
rather  to  regard  as  the  Paul  that  was  to  be.  He  dwelt 
on  the  latter  as  the  actual  Paul  coming  down  to  the  prose 
of  life  to  find  his  real  self,  lest  he  should  be  tempted  to 
forget  or  mistake  himself  in  the  liiidst  of  the  heavenly 
revelations. 

Such  a double  nature  is  in  us  all.  In  all  there  is  an 
Adam  and  a Christ  — an  ideal  and  a real.  Numberless 
instances  will  occur  to  us  in  the  daily  experience  of  life  ; 
the  fact  is  shown,  for  example,  in  the  strange  discrep- 
ancy so  often  seen  between  tlie  writings  of  the  poet  or 
the  sermons  of  the  preacher,  and  their  actual  lives. 
And  yet  in  tliis  there  is  no  necessary  hypocrisy,  for  the 
one  represents  tlie  man’s  aHjnnition^  the  other  his  attain- 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


419 


ment.  In  that  very  sentence,  however,  there  may  be 
a danger  ; for  is  it  not  dangerous  to  be  satisfied  with 
mere  aspirations  and  fine  sayings  ? The  Apostle  felt  it 
was  ; and,  therefore,  he  chose  to  take  the  lowest  — the 
actual  self — and  call  that  Paul,  treating  the  highest  as, 
for  the  time,  another  man.  Hence  in  the  fifth  verse  he 
says  : Of  such  an  one  will  I glory  : yet  of  myself  I will 
not  glory,  but  in  mine  infirmities.”  Were  the  crawling 
caterpillar  to  feel  within  himself  the  wings  that  are  to 
be,  and  be  haunted  with  instinctive  forebodings  of  the 
time  when  he  shall  hover  above  flowers  and  meadows, 
and  expatiate  in  heavenly  air,  — yet  the  wisdom  of  that 
caterpillar  would  be  to  remember  his  present  business  on 
the  leaf,  to  feed  on  green  herbs,  and  weave  his  web, 
lest,  losing  himself  in  dreams,  he  should  never  become 
a winged  insect  at  all.  In  the  same  manner,  it  is  our 
wisdom,  lest  we  become  all  earthy,  to  remember  that 
our  visions  shall  be  realized,  but  also  it  is  our  wisdom, 
lest  we  become  mere  dreamers,  or  spiritually  puffed 
up,”  to  remember  that  the  aspiring  man  within  us  is 
not  yet  our  true  self,  but,  as  it  were,  another  man  — the 

Christ  within  us,  the  hope  of  glory.” 

Our  subject  to-day,  then,  is  spiritual  ecstasy.” 

i.  The  time  when  this  vision  took  place  — ‘‘Four- 
teen years  ago.”  The  date  is  vague,  “ about  fourteen 
years  ago,”  and  is  irreconcilable  with  any  exact  point 
in  our  confused  chronology  of  the  life  of  St.  Paul. 
But  some  have  supposed  that  this  vision  was  identical 
with  that  recorded  (fi.cts^  ix.)  at  his  conversion  ; but 
it  is  evidently  different : — 

First : Because  the  words  in  that  transaction  were 
not  “ unlawful  to  utter.”  They  are  three  times  re- 
corded in  the  Acts,  with  no  reserve  or  reticence  at 
all. 

Secondly : Because  there  was  no  doubt  as  to  St. 
Paul’s  own  locality  in  that  vision.  He  has  twice  re- 
corded his  own  experience  of  it  in  terms  clear  and  un- 
mistakeable.  His  spirit  did  not  even  seem  to  him  to  be 
caught  up.  He  saw,  external  to  him  above,  a light, 


420 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


and  heard  a voice,  himself  all  the  while  consciously 
living  upon  earth  : nay,  more,  so  far  from  being  exaltecl, 
he  was  stricken  to  the  ground.  Here,  however,  the 
difficulty  to  the  Apostle’s  mind  is,  not  respecting  the 
nature  of  the  revelation,  but  how  and  where  he  was 
himself  situated  : Whether  in  the  body,  or  out  of  the 
body,  I cannot  tell.”  He  was  not  psychologist  enough 
for  that. 

Thirdly  : The  vision  which  met  him  on  the  road  to 
Damascus  was  of  an  humbling  character:  Saul,  Saul, 
why  persecutest  thou  me  ? ” In  that  sorrow-giving 
question  there  was  no  ground  for  spiritual  pride.  On 
the  other  hand,  in  this  case,  the  vision  was  connected 
with  a tendency  to  pride  and  vain-glory.  For,  lest  he 
should  be  puffed  up  beyond  measure,”  a messenger  of 
Satan  came  to  buffet  him. 

So,  evidently,  the  first  appearance  was  at  the  outset 
of  his  Christian  life  ; the  other,  in  the  fulness  of  his 
Christian  experience,  when,  through  deep  sufferings 
and  loss  for  Christ’s  sake,  prophecies  of  rest  and  glory 
hereafter  came  to  his  soul  to  sustain  and  comfort  him. 
And  thus,  in  one  of  those  moments  of  high  hope,  he 
breaks  forth : Our  light  affliction,  which  is  but  for  a 
moment  worketh  for  us  a far  more  exceeding  and  eter- 
nal weight  of  glory.” 

H.  This  very  circumstance,  however,  that  it  was  not 
the  vision  which  occurred  to  him  near  Damascus,  re- 
veals something  more  to  us.  By  our  proof  to  the  con- 
trary, we  have  reaped  not  a negative  gain,  but  a positive 
one.  If  the  vision  here  spoken  of  had  been  that  at  his 
conversion,  it  would  have  been  alone  in  his  experience. 
There  could  come  afterwards  no  other  like  it.  But  if  it 
was  not,  then  the  ecstasy  mentioned  in  this  chapter  did 
not  stand  alone  in  St.  Paul’s  experience.  It  was  not 
the  first,  — no,  nor  the  last.  He  had  known  of  many 
such,  for  he  s])eaks  of  the  abundance  of  the  revela- 
tions” given  to  him  (ver.  7).  This  marks  out  the  man. 
Indeed,  to  com])rehend  the  visions,  we  must  compre- 
hend tlie  man.  For  God  gives  visions  at  his  own  will, 


TO  THE  CORINTHIANS. 


421 


and  yet  according  to  certain  laws,  He  does  not  inspire 
every  one.  He  does  not  reveal  His  mysteries  to  men 
of  selfish,  or  hard,  or  phlegmatic  temperaments.  But 
when  He  gives  preternatural  communications,  then  He 
prepares  beforehand  by  a peculiar  spiritual  sensitiveness. 
Just  as,  physically,  certain  sensitivenesses  to  sound  and 
color  qualify  men  to  become  gifted  musicians  and  paint- 
ers, — so,  spiritually,  certain  strong  original  suscepti- 
bilities mark  out  the  man  who  will  be  the  recipient  of 
strange  gifts,  and  see  strange  sights  of  God,  and  ex- 
perience deep  feelings,  immeasurable  by  the  ordinary 
standard. 

Such  a man  was  St.  Paul  — a very  wondrous  nature 
— the  Jewish  nature  in  all  its  strength.  We  all  know 
that  the  Jewish  temperament  peculiarly  fitted  men  to 
be  the  organs  of  a Kevelation.  Its  fervor,  its  moral 
sense,  its  veneration,  its  indomitable  will,  all  adapted 
the  highest  sons  of  the  nation  for  receiving  hidden 
truths,  and  communicating  them  to  others.  Now  all 
this  was,  in  its  fulness,  in  St.  Paul.  A heart,  a brain, 
and  a soul  of  fire : all  his  life  a suppressed  volcano  ; — 
his  acts  living  things  with  hands  and  feet ; ” his  words, 

half  battles.”  A man,  consequently,  of  terrible  in- 
ward conflicts : his  soul  a battle-field  for  heaven  and 
hell.  Read,  for  example,  the  seventh  chapter  of  the 
Epistle  to  the  Romans,  describing  his  struggle  under 
the  law.  You  will  find  there  no  dull  metaphysics  about 
the  bondage  of  the  will,”  or  the  difference  between 
conscience  and  will.  It  is  all  intensely  personal.  St. 
Paul  himself  descends  into  the  argument,  as  if  the  ex- 
perience he  describes  were  present  then  ! O wretched 
man  that  I am!  who  shall  deliver  me  from  the  body  of 
this  death  ? ” So,  too,  in  the  sixteenth  chapter  of  the 
Acts.  He  had  no  abstract  perception  of  Macedonia’s 
need  of  the  Gospel.  To  his  soul  a man  of  Macedonia 
presents  himself  in  the  night,  crying,  ‘‘  Come  over,  and 
help  us.”  Again,  we  find  in  the  eighteenth  chapter  of 
the  Acts,  that  while  the  Apostle  was  at  Corinth,  beset 
with  trials,  surrounded  by  the  Jews  thirsting  for  his 
blood,  a message  came  in  a vision,  and  the  Lord  spoke 
36 


422 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


to  him,  telling  him  to  fear  not.  Now,  I believe,  such 
a voice  has  spoken  to  us  all,  only  we  explained  it  away 
as  tlie  result  of  our  own  reasoning.  St.  Paul’s  life  was 
with  God ; his  very  dreams  were  of  God.  A Being 
stood  beside  him  by  day  and  night.  He  saw  a form 
which  others  did  not  see,  and  heard  a voice  which 
others  could  not  hear. 

Again,  compare  the  twenty-sev.enth  chapter  of  the 
Acts,  twenty-third  verse  ; where  we  are  told  that  when 
he  was  a prisoner,  tossed  for  many  nights  upon  the 
tempestuous  sea,  he  yet  saw  the  angel  of  that  God, 

Whose  he  was,  and  Whom  he  served.”  Remember 
his  noble  faith,  his  unshaken  conviction,  that  all  would 
be  as  the  vision  and  the  voice  of  God  had  told  him. 

Ever  you  see  him  on  the  brink  of  that  other  world. 

Even  his  trials  and  conflicts  were  those  of  a hicrh  order. 

• ® 

Most  of  us  are  battling  with  some  mean  appetite  or  gross 
passion.  St.  Paul’s  battles  were  not  those  of  the  flesh 
and  appetites,  but  of  spirit  struggling  with  spirit.  I 
infer  this  partly  from  his  own  special  gift  of  chastity, 
and  partly  from  the  case  which  he  selects  in  the  seventh 
of  Romans,  which  is  covetousness  ” — an  evil  desire, 
but  still  one  of  the  spirit. 

Now  to  such  men,  the  other  world  is  revealed  as  a 
reality  which  it  cannot  appear  to  others.  Those  things 
in  heaven  and  earth  which  philosophy  does  not  dream 
of,  these  men  see.  But,  doubtless,  such  things  are  seen 
under  certain  conditions.  For  example,  many  of  St. 
Paul’s  visions  were  when  he  was  ^\fasting^^^  at  times 
when  the  body  is  not  predominant  in  our  humanity. 
For  fulness  of  bread  ” and  abundance  of  idleness  are 
not  the  conditions  in  which  we  can  see  the  things  of 
(xod.  Ao:ain,  most  of  these  revelations  were  made  to 
him  in  the  midst  of  triaL  In  the  prison  at  Philippi, 
during  the  shipwreck,  while  the  thorn  was  in  his 
flesh,”  then  it  was  that  the  vision  of  unutterable  things 
was  granted  to  him,  and  the  vision  of  God  in  His 
clearness  came. 

This  was  the  exj)erience  of  Christ  Himself.  God  does 
not  lavish  His  choicest  gifts,  but  reserves  them.  Thus, 


TO  THE  COllINTHIANS. 


423 


at  Christ’s  baptism,  before  beginning  His  work,  the  Voice 
from  Heaven  was  heard.  It  was  in  the  Temptation  that 
the  ano-els  ministered  to  Him.  On  the  Transfiguration 
Mount  the  gloiy  shone,  when  Moses  and  Elias  spake 
to  Him  of  His  death,  which  He  should  accomplish  at 
Jerusalem.  In  perplexity  which  of  two  things  to  say, 
the  Thunder  Voice  replied,  I have  both  glorified  it, 
and  will  glorify  it  again.”  In  the  Agony,  there  came 
an  angel  strengthening  Him. 

Hence  we  learn,  that  Inspiration  is,  first,  not  the 
result  of  will  or  effort,  but  is  truly  and  properly  from 
God.  Yet  that,  secondly,  it  is  dependent  on  certain 
conditions,  granted  to  certain  states,  and  to  a certain 
character.  Thirdly,  that  its  sphere  is  not  in  things  of 
sense,  but  in  moral  and  spiritual  truth.  And,  fourthly, 
that  it  is  not  elaborated  by  induction  from  experience, 
but  is  the  result  of  intuition.  Yet,  though  inspiration 
is  granted  in  its  fulness  only  to  rare^  choice  spirits  like 
St.  Paul,  we  must  remember  that  in  degree  it  belongs 
to  all  Christian  experience.  There  have  been  mo- 
ments, surely,  in  our  experience,  when  the  vision  of 
God  was  clear.  They  were  not,  I will  venture  to  say, 
moments  of  fulness,  or  success,  or  triumph.  In  some 
season  of  desertion,  you  have,  in  solitary  longing,  seen 
the  skyladder  as  Jacob  saw  it  of  old,  and  felt  Heaven 
open  even  to  you  ; or  in  childish  purity  — for  Heaven 
lies  around  us  in  our  infancy”  — heard  a voice  as 
Samuel  did  ; or,  in  some  struggle  with  conscience  and 
inclination,  heard  from  Heaven  the  words,  Why  per- 
secutest  thou  Me  ? ” or,  in  feebleness  of  health,  when 
the  weight  of  the  bodily  frame  was  taken  off,  whether 
it  were  in  delirium  or  vision,  you  could  not  say  but 
Faith  brightened  her  eagle  eye,  and  saw  far  into  the 
tranquil  things  of  Death  ; or,  in  prayer,  you  have  been 
conscious  of  more  than  earth  present  in  the  silence,  and 
a Hand  in  yours,  and  a Voice  that  you  could  hear,  and 
almost  the  Eternal  breath  upon  your  brow. 

HI.  Lastly,  this  spiritual  ecstasy  is  unutterable : 
unutterable,  however,  in  two  degrees : — 


424 


LECTURES  ON  THE  EPISTLES 


1.  Unspeakable”  (yer.  4).  This  it  is,  sim[)ly  be- 
cause the  things  of  the  Spirit  are  untranslateable  into 
the  language  of  the  intellect.  Feelings,  convictions, 
emotions  — love,  duty,  aspiration,  devotion  — in  what 
sentences  will  you  express  to  another  what  you  feel  and 
mean  by  these  ? 

Conceive,  then,  a translation  to  Heaven,  and  a return 
from  thence.  How  would  the  man  describe  the  things 
seen  and  heard  ? In  the  fourth  chapter  of  Revelation 
the  attempt  is  made,  but  it  instantly  takes  the  form  of 
symbols  and  figures.  A throne  is  there,  and  One  is 
there  like  a jasper  and  a sardine  stone  : a rainbow  like 
an  emerald  encircles  all.  Seven  Spirit  Lamps  are  burn- 
ing : the  lightnings,  and  thunderings,  and  voices,  are 
heard,  and  the  sea  of  glass  shines  like  crystal.  Thus 
did  the  writer,  in  high  symbolic  language,  attempt,  in- 
adequately, to  shadow  forth  the  glory  which  his  spirit 
realized,  but  which  his  sense  saw  not.  For  Heaven  is 
not  scenery,  nor  anything  appreciable  by  ear  or  eye  : 
Heaven  is  God  felt. 

Hence,  when  at  Pentecost,  the  rushing  wind  filled 
men  with  the  afflatus  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  they  tried 
to  utter  in  articulate  words  what  they  felt,  is  it  not 
perfectly  intelligible  why,  to  the  unsympatli^tic  by- 
standers, they  seemed  like  men  ‘‘  filled  with  new 
wine  ? ” 

Again,  this  ecstasy  was  unutterable,  because  “ not 
lawful  for  a man  to  utter.”  Christian  modesty  forbids. 
There  are  bridal  moments  of  the  soul : and  not  easily 
forgiven  are  those  who  would  utter  the  secrets  of  its 

hio-h  intercourse  with  its  Lord.  There  is  a certain 

® • • • • 

spiritual  indelicacy  in  persons  who  cannot  perceive  that 
not  everything  which  is  a matter  of  experience  and 
knowledge  is,  therefore,  a subject  for  conversation. 
There  are  some  things  in  this  world  too  low  to  be 
spoken  of,  and  some  things  too  high.  You  cannot 
discuss  such  subjects  without  vulgarizing  them. 

Thus,  when  Elijah  and  Elisha  went  together  from 
Gilgal  to  Jordan,  the  sons  of  the  prophets  came  to 
Elislia  with  that  conlidential  gossij)  which  is  common 


TO  THE  CORIXTHIAXS. 


425 


in  those  who  think  to  understand  mysteries  by  talking 
of  them:  Knowest  thou,”  they  asked,  ‘Hhat  the 

Lord  will  take  away  thy  master  to-day  ? ” Remem- 
ber Elisha’s  dignified  reply  : Yea,  I know  it : hold  ye 
your  peace.” 

God  dwells  in  the  thick  darkness.  Silence  knows 
more  of  Him  than  speech.  His  Name  is  Secret : there- 
fore beware  how  you  profane  His  stillnesses.  To  each 
of  His  servants  He  giveth  a white  stone,  and  in  the 
stone  a new  name  written,  which  no  man  knoweth 
saving  he  that  receiveth  it.” 


36^ 


THE  EXD. 


'■4 


ROBERTSON’S  WRITINGS 


PREPARING  FOR  PUBLICATION. 

ADDRESSES  AND  LECTURES, 

1.  Delivered  at  the  Opening  of  the  Working  Men’s  Institution  at 

Brighton. 

2.  On  the  Introduction  of  Sceptical  Publications  into  the  Library 

of  the  Working  Men’s  Institution  at  Brighton. 

3 4.  On  Poetry,  and  its  Influence  on  the  Working  Classes.  Two 
Lectures. 

5.  On  Wordsworth’s  Poetry. 

In  One  Volume, 


ALSO, 

A SMALL  VOLUME  OF 

THOUGHTS,  PRAGMENTS,  TRANSLATIONS, 

&C.  &C. 


PUBLISHED  BY  TICKNOR  & FIELDS. 


THE 

FIRST  SERIES  OF  SERMONS, 

BY  THE  LATE 

REV.  FREDERICK  W.  ROBERTSON,  M.  A. 

1 vol.  12mo.  $1. 


THE 

SECOND  SERIES  OF  SERMONS, 

BY  THE  LATE 

REV.  FREDERICK  W.  ROBERTSON,  M.  A. 

1 vol.  12iiio.  $1. 


THE 

THIRD  SERIES  OF  SERMONS, 

BY  THE  LATE 

REV.  FREDERICK  W.  ROBERTSON,  M.  A. 

1 vol.  12mo.  $1. 


THE 

FOURTH  SERIES  OF  SERMONS, 

BEING 

EXPOSITIONS  OF  ST.  PAUL’S  EPISTLES  TO  THE  CORIN- 
THIANS. 

BY  THE  LATE 

REV.  FREDERICK  W.  ROBERTSON,  M.  A. 

1 vol.  12mo.  Si. 


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